Strife and Lockhart enemies or lovers?
by Souljahette
Summary: Tifa is a new student at Cloud's school, they like each others' looks but what happens when their eyes meet?Cloud and Tifa all the way; its my second fic, be nice. NO FLAMES!
1. The eyes meet

Strife and Lockhart- enemies or lovers?  
  
Disclaimer: I do not own Final Fantasy 7; it belongs to Squaresoft, Sony and other associated groups, don't sue, and even if you did, you wouldn't get anything, I'm a flat broke student, suing me would make no sense at all.  
  
A/N: My second fic! Okay, I know I'm supposed to finish The Power of Love, but I couldn't resist starting a Final Fantasy 7 fic. FF7 is my FAVORITE game, but I'm sorry to all the Aeris and Cloud fans, Aeris won't be in this fic, quite frankly I honestly don't like Aeris, I don't hate her, but I don't like her, no you may not flame, any how you try to flame me I will lace you with some bad words left right and center, bad words you never know existed and you never want to hear. Anyways, another high school AU fic; may have a little OOCness, not much though:  
  
Chapter 1 ~  
  
Cloud Strife woke up at the annoying sound of his alarm clock at precisely 6 o' clock. The small silver ringing thing lay what seemed to be miles away from his bed 'oh great' he sighed inwardly 'this means that I have to get up.' The spiky-haired boy got out of bed and deftly located the annoying lump of metal, plastic and glass and flung it into his bedroom wall. He took a navy-blue turtleneck sleeveless shirt out his closet and a pair of navy-blue jeans, he laid the chosen clothes on his bed and proceeded to the bathroom and took a quick shower and brushed his teeth. He quickly got dressed and grabbed a bottle of hair-gel, he slapped some into his palm and began spiking his golden hair; he smirked at himself in the mirror and put on a pair of boots. Grabbing a blue schoolbag, he threw a few notebooks in, slung it over his left shoulder and left his room. He sauntered to the kitchen. He greeted his mother with a peck on the cheek and a 'good morning ma". Dropping his bag onto the counter, he sought something to eat, he eyed the bread and decided to make a few slices of toast; he dropped two slices of bread into the toaster and poured himself a glass of orange juice. He downed the meal and left the house and walked to school with no thoughts in particular in his mind.  
  
~~~Meanwhile~~~  
  
Tifa Lockhart woke up at 5 o' clock, an hour before her alarm clock was to ring; she put on a pair of gloves and went to her large punching bag and began executing a few powerful moves. She was at the bag for an hour, the alarm went off and she grabbed a pair of black shorts, a white tank top and laid them on her bed, she ran to the bathroom and took a shower, brushed her teeth, she put on her clothes and brushed and did her long black hair into a low ponytail that fell below her waist. Swiftly grabbing her pre- packed school bag, she put on a pair of sneakers and ran downstairs. She greeted her parents and made herself something to eat; she left the house and went to school, it was going to be her first day at this new school.  
  
Upon reaching the school, she found her way to the front office, she explained herself and was handed a slip of paper with her locker number and classroom. Thankful that she was early, she found her locker; her classroom was right next to it, she smiled put a few items away in it, and hung a mirror onto the door, and slammed it shut, she left the locker and entered the classroom; her ruby eyes scanned the room for a seat, she saw one by the window, she slung her bag over the chair's backrest and sat down, she stared at the schedule, it said that classes started at 8:00, it was still early, 7:30 'half an hour to waste' she thought to herself, she pulled a novel out of her bag and read to pass the time. The bell rung, many students scrambled into the class, they looked at her, some smiled and waved, some cast odd glances to her, Tifa brushed it off, she waved back to the wavers and smiled. A slim girl with short black hair sat beside Tifa, "Hi! I'm Yuffie!" she smiled "you're new here right" she questioned. Tifa nodded and said "hi Yuffie I'm Tifa." Yuffie glanced at Tifa's book, and exclaimed, "Hey, you're into vampires too?" "Yeah, I've always liked the whole vampire theme it's pretty cool" she replied.  
  
A teacher entered the classroom; they all stood up and put away whatever they were doing. Tifa slid the book back into her bag and waited until they were given the order to sit. "All right, sit down people" the teacher said "we're going to take roll call now, so just answer to your names." They all sat and waited. A boy with spiky golden hair entered the room, mumbled a word of apology for lateness and scanned the classroom for a seat with aqua- colored eyes, he saw an empty seat behind Tifa; he slid into the seat as the teacher called out the register. Cloud heard the teacher call the name: Tifa Lockhart and he heard the pretty girl answer to her name, he watched her intently, under his gaze, she felt someone watching her; she glanced back and saw the boy staring at her. She slightly blushed as his eyes wandered to her chest and turned around. Cloud heard his name and answered to it. "Class, my name is Mr. Wilshire, I'll be teaching you physics, well to those of you who have chosen physics, I am your form teacher, and I'm in charge of this classroom" the teacher said as he handed out timetables with the students' names printed on it showing which classroom you had a particular subject and who would be teaching you.  
Tifa glanced at hers and Yuffie, she compared it; she and Yuffie had almost all the same classes together. The bell rang, Yuffie yanked Tifa's bag and pulled her to the classroom: 8/44, it was a second form class, they had English Literature in this room; they grabbed seats in the middle of the class. A few other students from their class had this subject, Cloud being one of them. He took a seat two spaces from Tifa, he had a good view of the girl 'she's the cutest girl I've ever seen' the thought absently as he watched her pull out a notebook and a pen. He pulled out a notebook himself and wrote down the date. They awaited the arrival of the teacher, after fifteen minutes, no teacher came, the students brought their desks together with their friends and began to chat, Tifa and Yuffie began to talk as well, they found out much about each other, also they found many similarities between the two, Cloud could hear the conversation well, he found out that Tifa Lockhart was a black belt in karate, a judo master, a kung fu practitioner, a kick boxer, and held many other martial arts styles under her belt. He took a good look at her, her limbs were corded with lean muscle, her body was toned, her facial structure was that of a warrior, but however, she was graceful and beautiful, Cloud sighed. Yuffie went to look for something in her bag, Tifa noticed the golden haired boy, she ran her eyes over his slumped form; she gazed at his spiky golden hair, a smile formed at her lips, her eyes ran over his muscled body, her smile grew wider, his body was toned, he had a quiet strength about him, she knew that this boy was a fighter, it was easily visible, he reminded her of a samurai in some strange way. Her ruby eyes ran over his body again, this time, her gaze was caught in his aqua eyes 'he's definitely the sexiest guy I've ever seen' his lips twisted into a sardonic smirk as did hers. Their eyes met. Ruby met sapphire. A challenge rose between the two.  
  
A/N: Okay, that's chapter one: Strife and Lockhart- enemies or lovers, give me some reviews, it'll bring up my self confidence and make the story better. If you don't like it, say it nicely, if you like it, leave a review, don't you dare try to flame me, a warning was issued in the first A/N so.^-^  
  
*~*~*~*~Click That Button*~*~*~*  
  
Black Chiney 


	2. enemies?

Strife and Lockhart- enemies or lovers?  
  
Disclaimer: I do not own Final Fantasy 7; it belongs to Squaresoft, Sony and other associated groups, don't sue, and even if you did, you wouldn't get anything, I'm a flat broke student, suing me would make no sense at all.  
  
A/N: Okay, people remember. I am new to this so please just give me a chance! Thanks for the reviews. No, you may not flame, anyhow you try to flame me I will lace you with some bad words left right and center, bad words you never know existed and you never want to hear. Uhh.I do not know how this is going to end yet, so if y'all have no suggestions drop a review and feel free to email me at spiky_wong90@hotmail.com okay, enough of my meaningless chatter, here is chapter two!  
  
Chapter 2 ~  
  
~*~*~ Cloud's P.O.V. ~*~*~  
  
Cloud saw the warrior's spirit and heart in her wine-colored eyes as he stared into them. By her eyes alone, he was mesmerized.  
  
'Damn, I wonder if she knows how sexy she looks when she's doing that' he thought to himself.  
  
He felt something in his body when he gazed into her deep ruby eyes. Something about this girl definitely intrigued him. It was as though her soul was calling to his for comfort  
  
'It feels like I'm connected to her somehow, damn it she's making it so hard for me. She is just perfect. She looks like a goddess.  
  
However, he knew he would not be able to get her so easily. The way she was looking at him with that smirk on her face, and the piercing crimson eyes, he felt as if she held his heart in his hands. By natural instinct, his smirk was one that looked menacing. He knew it all too well. It was something that he had trained himself to do. His aqua eyes held many secrets. Right now, they possessed the sinister look of bloodlust; Cloud alone knew that bloodlust was not it.  
  
~*~*~ Tifa's P.O.V ~*~*~  
  
Tifa likewise saw the fighting spirit he possessed. It was practically radiating through his striking features, the way he looked at her, it frightened her yet intrigued her. She was instantly curious about him.  
  
'Whoa, he's cute. Definitely sexy with all that amazing golden hair, but his eyes.I like something about them. He looks so mysterious.'  
  
She knew that he was challenging her to a fight; it was as though invisible threads connected the two. It was as if they were destined to meet. She personally thought that he was hot and really was checking her out, yet his eyes told her otherwise.  
  
'His eyes are amazing!' she screamed in her head 'he looks so.mm damn this boy is fine.'  
  
(A/N: normal point-of-view resumes.no- more like begins here)  
  
The bell rang, breaking the two's eye contact. Tifa slipped her books into her bag and slung it over a shoulder. She waited casually for Yuffie who had fallen asleep and was now scrambling frantically to get her books into her bag. She laid her eyes in Cloud's direction.  
  
"Yo Tifa" Yuffie said amiably.  
  
Tifa tore her eyes away from the nice view she had of Cloud's behind. "Yeah?" she asked  
  
Yuffie yanked Tifa towards her and whispered, "First day here and you're already checking out Strife?"  
  
Tifa did not answer, she pulled out her timetable and glanced at it, she saw that she had Biology now and wondered if Yuffie was in her class.  
  
"Yo, you have Bio now?" Tifa questioned the small girl who was currently checking out an attractive boy with long black hair. He wore a deep blood colored button-down shirt and heavy black jeans.  
  
Yuffie Kisaragi had a crush on Vincent Valentine for as long as she could remember, Tifa waved her hand to draw the girl's attention. Yuffie quickly snapped out of her current trance and answered Tifa.  
  
"Huh, what were you saying? I was busy looking at Vincent," Yuffie confessed. She currently sported a blush while she fiddled with a shuriken keychain that hung from a ring of keys.  
  
"I was asking you if you have Biology now," Tifa calmly repeated while she casually switched her bag to the other shoulder.  
  
"Naw, I don't do Biology anymore, I dropped it last year.ever since that in- forget it, I'll tell you some other time." Yuffie replied.  
  
"Okay then, I'll see you at lunch. The labs are on the other side of the school right?" Tifa asked.  
  
"Yeah, which lab did you get?" Yuffie glanced at Tifa's schedule, "oh you're lucky, you get lab 1, that's the best lab. It's the first lab when you turn the corner, it's like a lecture hall, got air-con and stuff. You only go to labs 2 and 3 when you have experiments." She said while indicating the direction with her thumb.  
  
Tifa nodded and said something about meeting Yuffie at her locker at lunch and walked off to find her classroom. She walked down the corridors swiftly and silently, she found the room, it was just as Yuffie said it was. She took a seat in the third row of the ascending slope-like mass of furniture. The infamous Vincent stalked through the doors, followed by a few slut-like girls who clung to him as if their lives depended on him. Tifa looked at them and wanted to scoff at them. She decided against it though and stared straight in front of her.  
  
Cloud entered the room.  
  
She felt her heart skip a beat when she heard him move some chairs around and sat down right behind her.  
  
'Okay Tifa, you can't panic, he's only there because that Vincent guy is sitting in the fifth row.' She reasoned to herself, noting that a total of four of the sluts were pressing themselves towards him, not seeming to realize that he was completely oblivious to them. 'They've got to be friends, this Cloud and that Vincent. Yeah that's it; it's the only logical reason.' As to prove her reason, her sharp ears heard the two talking behind her. Her train of thought was broken when a tall teacher walked through the door. The class stood up.  
  
"Okay, you may sit" the teacher spoke. They sat noisily as he pulled out a remote from a drawer and turned on the a-c unit. "My name is Mr. Lewis, I'm a strict teacher. My pass mark is 85%. You will be attentive in my class if you aren't attentive in any other class-I'll personally see to it and if you fail my class, you will be severely punished," he said in a low, cold voice. He brought out a bright blue register and called out the names for any absences.  
  
Tifa instantly disliked this teacher; his eyes were cold and icy. He had a terrible attitude, Tifa nevertheless told herself to work hard in this class. She would not want to experience the pleasure of being a victim of this man's punishments. She heard her name and answered.  
  
Mr. Lewis finished calling the names and started talking about lab partners. "This class is rather small, a dozen or so people, I will randomly choose lab partners; you will be in groups of twos and will be partners for the entire school year. I also want each student to sit beside his or her partner for the year. He ran his eyes down the register and called out random names.  
  
"Alex Yee, Joanne Cheng" the tall Chinese boy was already sitting beside his girlfriend, he smiled at her and she blushed.  
  
"Cheryl-Ann Joseph, Tony Gordon." She was a demure girl whereas he was a flirt. He sat down beside Cheryl and smirked at her; she was instantly disgusted. Tony had a reputation for sleeping around with girls. He had no shame about it.  
  
She raised her hand and asked if she could switch for someone apart from Tony. "Excuse me Mr. Lewis, I would like to have a different partner," she said in a soft voice.  
  
"I'm terribly sorry Ms. Joseph; I will not be switching any partners. What I say is final your partner is Mr. Gordon. That's final, so now if you would get off my back, I would like to continue." He said in the cold voice that sent chills down her spine.  
  
She accepted defeat with a nod and turned her back to the lecherous boy that would be her lab partner for a whole year.  
  
"Vincent Valentine, Marian Sylvester" he was one of the popular, more sought after boys in the school while she was an athlete. Vincent moved towards the girl and sat down beside her casually.  
  
"Terri-Lee Adams, Kathleen Johnson." These two were amongst the girls that were hanging onto Vincent. They were cheerleader type people who loved to be in control over everyone. They were popular subjects in school gossip. These two were two-timers, slept around, and were the perfect description for whores. (A/N: okay, if any of you are cheerleaders reading this fic, no offense but this is what cheerleaders act like at my school)  
  
"Tifa Lockhart, Cloud Strife"  
  
Tifa froze, 'the cutest boy I've ever seen is going to be MY lab partner for a WHOLE YEAR' she thought to herself.  
  
Cloud moved towards her secretly pleased, Tifa looked flustered, yet flattered. 'I'll get to know her better' Cloud thought. He slid into the empty seat beside her.  
  
"Lee Bridges, Tiffany Rhode." Both of them had been best friends since third grade, they were glad because they did not particularly want to be partners with the remaining people.  
  
"Maki Philips, Mai Philips." These were twin sisters, who were particularly whorish. They too were popular topics in school gossip.  
  
They settled with their new lab partners and took out their writing apparatus. Mr. Lewis began writing notes on the marker board. They began to write.  
  
Cloud glanced at Tifa's book and absently thought, 'she's got beautiful handwriting' as he began to write as well.  
  
~*~*~15 Minutes Later~*~*~  
  
"Okay people, listen up" Mr. Lewis broke the silence. The class' attention was now on him. "I have planned a field trip for us. Next week Friday, we will be collaborating with the other Biology students and an eight-grade class on this trip. We are going to the beach to collect marine life, you are required to bring swimwear, and YES people you will have to swim." He spoke in the same icy tone. "However, I will not accompany you" the class inwardly cheered, "Ms. Anthony will be in charge of you on the trip, I expect your utmost behavior on this trip and I trust you will not embarrass me. I have high expectations of you and I want for you all to watch out for the eight-graders."  
  
They heard a knock on the door and a tenth grader opened the door and entered. She whispered a message to the teacher, 'urgently needed' and 'right now' was a few phrases they heard.  
  
"Excuse me class, I am needed for something urgent. Please read pages 50 to 60 in your text, I may not be back by the time the bell rings, so do the questions on that chapter for homework on binder sheet for me. That will be your first mark for the term." He left the room quickly and chatter broke out.  
  
Cloud turned to Tifa and stared at her in the eyes. She was a little shocked to turn around and find him gazing into her eyes; strangely, she could not pull her eyes away from him.  
  
He averted his eyes from hers and thought, 'damn, next week Friday I get to see this girl in a swimsuit, am I lucky or what? I can't wait'  
  
"Hey Tifa, you're new here right?" Cloud asked her smoothly.  
  
She bluntly answered him, "Yeah I am, what it is to you?" Instantly she felt bad about her wrong choice of words.  
  
'Damn you child, what is wrong with you, you can't talk to people like that, especially someone as hot as him' she mentally scolded herself.  
  
Cloud was surprised and angry. At the same time, he was intrigued.  
  
'This is the first girl that has ever answered me like that, who the hell does she think she is?' his mind flared up for a second.  
  
His instinct was ready with a witty response, "listen Lockhart, I was trying to be nice, but it doesn't seem like people like you understand what that means" he snapped angrily at her.  
  
'oh crap, I'm such an idiot, how the hell can I expect her to like me after that, damn you Strife, you blew it big time' he cursed himself.  
  
"It doesn't matter, I can live without 'friends' I don't need your 'friendship' and I neither want nor need your concern," she snapped back at him.  
  
'Dammit Tifa, what is with you, of course you need his friendship. Look at him he is adorable. If you ever had any hopes or dreams of being his friend, much less girlfriend, all those dreams and hopes are gone. I'd be surprised if he even talks to you after that.' She cursed herself as she realized how awful it must have been to be on the receiving end of that.  
  
Cloud was genuinely hurt; she did not want to deal with anything that involved him. His anguish turned into anger, an anger that fueled his mind to say stinging words. "Look, I was trying to be nice for a change, in case you haven't noticed, I didn't have to go through all that, now I know what they mean when they say people have pretty faces and bad character" he answered in a low, almost silky voice.  
  
'Strife, get a frigging hold of yourself, dammit. What kind of crap did you go and get yourself involved? You could have brushed off the whole thing. Did you hear how your voice sounded? Damn you boy, you sounded like you were going to kill her.'  
  
"Well, find someone else to try and be nice to, my life is already messed up enough as it is, I don't need you in it so stay the hell away from it" she flung back at him in a low, whisper-like growl.  
  
'Tifa Lockhart, why the hell are you talking like that, what is wrong with you? Girl, stop it now. You cannot possibly get into fights like that. Tell the guy that you're sorry' she told herself. 'Okay, here goes'  
  
"Listen Cloud, I'm sorry. I didn't mean all that, I'm going through some tough times in life right now, I'm sorry." She said as she hung her head in shame.  
  
Cloud had half the mind to tell her to shut up, but he could not, not after the words "I'm sorry" fell from her lips. The way she said his name made him almost hallucinate. He wanted to go and hug her and tell her that it was okay and that she was forgiven, but he decided against it, he didn't even know her all that well, but his stupid pride had to go and spoil everything. He ground his teeth and answered her in the same silky-like voice, "Whatever Lockhart."  
  
'Seriously, what is it with you man, the girl is sorry and you won't even accept her apology? You know she didn't have to apologize to you.'  
  
"Listen Cloud, I'm apologizing to you and I've forgiven you, but you, you don't care, you don't want my apology. Oh maybe it is because I am not good enough for you, well fine. If you won't take my apology, I don't see the need to try to be friends with you. If you have any more snappy comebacks, don't even bother, I hate you" she said, anger blazing in her ruby eyes and seething in her angelic voice.  
  
Cloud Strife did not expect this, the words "I hate you" felt so harsh coming from her, she hated him now, all because of his damn pride, his damn pride had to go and mess things up. He couldn't do anything now, and it pained him. Tifa Lockhart despised him, and he could have avoided it all. He felt broken when he saw her turn her back to him. It pained him terribly but he tried to brush it off, he too turned away and felt shame. Tifa was the one who had made him feel shame, then that meant she was the only one capable of making him show feelings.  
  
A/N: This was a nice place to stop. Seven pages in Microsoft Word.I didn't know I was capable of doing so much in one hour.anyway. Did you like it? Let me know! What's going to happen in the next chapter? *gasps* does Tifa feel the same way about our dear Cloud? What is Cloud going to do about his conscience? I have some ideas that I think are good, but let me hear your side of it. Leave a review please.NO FLAMES!  
  
*~*~*~*~Click That Button*~*~*~*  
  
Black Chiney 


	3. friends

Strife and Lockhart- enemies or lovers?  
  
Disclaimer: I do not own Final Fantasy 7; it belongs to Squaresoft, Sony and other associated groups, don't sue, and even if you did, you wouldn't get anything, I'm a flat broke student, suing me would make no sense at all. I may not own Cloud and Tifa, Yuffie and Vincent, but all original characters and ideas belong to me! I do not own Lays Potato Chips, or a park, or classical music, or a manor or anything for the fact - just my computer and some other stuff, I'm just a kid.  
  
A/N: Ooh.lots of conflict in chapter two. My favorite FF7 couple are fighting, oh my *gasps* what have I done? Wahoo, thanks for the terrific reviews people, they mean a lot to me. Arigatou minna-san, ^- ~\\//.uhh.yeah. Anyways, here is chapter three of Strife and Lockhart- enemies or lovers? No you may not flame me.I am not perfect, nobody is. If you don't like it, just say it nicely and suggest something that would make you happy 'cause I'd be glad to put your ideas in it, however no Aeris and Cloud pairing, I just don't like Aeris. Anyway, enough of my talk, the talk you don't want to hear, here it is:  
  
Chapter 3  
  
~*~*~ Cloud's P.O.V. ~*~*~  
  
Cloud couldn't say anything. He was shocked. Tifa Lockhart hated him, the one girl that he had actually shown interest to by will, hated his guts. All because of his damn pride, it was his fault because he could have brushed it off and been cordial.  
  
Unfortunately, it wasn't his style to go and do anything to please anyone but himself, especially a girl. However, he denied himself of a chance he would more than likely never have again. His chance to be with the most beautiful girl he had ever laid eyes on.  
  
'You're an idiot, do you know that Strife? Damn you boy, it was so easy to brush off, but you HAD to go and answer her like that, you are so goddamn stupid. She even apologized to you.she even told you the reason why and you just HAD to be the idiot you are and mess it up' he thought to himself.  
  
His pride countered all those with axioms of 'I won't let a damn bitch like her put me to shame just because she's the sexiest chick I've ever laid eyes on' and things like, 'her heart is as ugly as sin' and ' she's nothing but bad news, look at that horrible temper and she is so rude'  
  
Cloud's mind was all blurry; he fought not to agree with his pride. He finally contradicted it with a stinging remark, 'How the hell can you call her a bitch when you want her so bad? How can you say her heart is ugly? Her heart is beautiful, just as she is on the outside. If she were such an awful person, why in hell would she apologize to me? Answer that- I know you can't, you just had to go and mess up what would be a great relationship with her, damn you pride. You made her hate me and there's not a thing I can do about it. How can you say her temper is horrible, did you stop to listen to the words you said? Damn, when she said she hated you she really meant it and I can see why'  
  
His pride couldn't retort to that, Cloud fell silent. He couldn't face Tifa, not for now at least. He felt broken by the last three words he had heard fall from her lips. If it were anyone else, he wouldn't have cared. He didn't even know her but he felt an undeniable connection with her and confessed to himself that he had fallen for her. It was going to be so hard for him with his malevolent temper and pride to make it up to Tifa. He pleaded to God for some type of assistance.  
  
~*~*~ Tifa's P.O.V ~*~*~  
  
'Tifa Lockhart, what the hell is your frigging problem? Why in God's name did you have to be such a bitch? Damn you child, all you had to say is that you weren't in the mood to talk and none of this crap would have happened. How could you? He is the hottest guy ever and.and you just HAD to start with the bitchiness. Dammit Tifa, you better start hoping that this was all a nightmare because if I recall correctly, you and a certain Mr. Strife here are going to be lab partners for a whole frigging year' she reproached herself.  
  
Tifa paled at the memory of Mr. Lewis saying that they were not allowed to change lab partners. She cursed herself also at the memory of telling Cloud that she hated him. She messed up a chance to make a friend, messed up the chance to be his lover.  
  
'Tifa Lockhart, you so messed this up'  
  
She flipped her long hair over one shoulder and pretended to ignore the little buzzing voices that tormented her insecurities in a certain situation of a particular golden-haired, aqua-eyed individual who went by the name of Cloud Strife. She began to read the given pages, memorized the information and proceeded to do the questions.  
  
Cloud saw her little gesture from the corners of his eyes and wanted to melt on the spot. Little did Tifa know; she was driving a certain golden haired boy wild with her innocent actions. She casually turned the page and concentrated on her work. Cloud watched her intently from the corners of his eyes. He was fascinated by her angelic appearance, her kind heart and even more intrigued by her fiery temper. In his eyes, she was perfect. Cloud sighed inaudibly and began to do the work as well. Every two or so minutes, his eyes strayed to the beautiful girl beside him. Cloud half- wished that his pride didn't exist; it was an annoying voice that bid him to do all the things that he didn't really want to. Yet it was so strong, and was hardly ever right. It prohibited him from doing many things. He wanted to apologize to her badly.but he couldn't. He could not possibly face her so soon.not after that.  
  
The bell rang  
  
They all practically bolted through the doors and ran for the cafeteria. Tifa gathered her books, walked nonchalantly to Yuffie's locker, and waited patiently for her. A few minutes later, the small and swift girl burst the corner and nearly collided with Tifa.  
  
"Yo Yuffie, what's with the speed?" Tifa asked her single friend for the moment at the godforsaken school, as she assisted her up.  
  
Yuffie had fallen flat on her back to avoid collision with Tifa. She took the proffered hand and stood up as if nothing happened.  
  
"Oh, my Accounts teacher was giving out homework when the bell went, we had to practically break down the door to get out and not get caught. She's so boring, and I personally don't understand a word that comes out of her mouth. You'd think she'd learn English first before she wanted to teach English-speaking people Accounts," Yuffie explained as she threw a few books into her locker.  
  
"Ah.I see" Tifa said as she took the information. "So, what exactly am I here for?" she questioned.  
  
"Yeah, I told you to come here so I could show you where we sit for lunch, we don't eat in the cafeteria.we sit outside on the pathway to school after we buy our lunch, sometimes I bring lunch to school." She said in one breath and nearly choked after it.  
  
"That's cool.but who's the 'we,'" Tifa asked, albeit a bit curious as to how Yuffie could talk so much, so fast.  
  
"Oh, there's Alex and his girlfriend Joanne, there's Serena - she's Alex's little sister. Then there is Ana and Chris"  
  
She said as she counted off the people on her long fingers.  
  
"That's our lunch group. Alex and the rest of us have been in that lunch group since seventh grade.we still are. Man, next year we'll be in twelfth grade.that is some powerful friendship- a whole five years. Ah.enough of my yapping.lets go!" she continued while she began walking towards the cafeteria.  
  
Tifa nodded and began to walk as well. "Umm.Yuffie, is it Alex Yee and Joanne Cheng?" she asked quietly.  
  
"Yeah, do you have a class with them or something?" Yuffie asked.  
  
"Yeah, they're in my Bio class" she answered as they approached the noisy cafeteria.  
  
Yuffie grabbed Tifa's upper arm and dragged her towards the general food line and they stood in line.  
  
As they waited for the long line to make its way up to the cashier, Yuffie decided to talk a little, relieving some of the pent up boredom from waiting in the slow-moving line. "Hey Tifa, how'd the Bio class go? thought I saw Strife go in there, you and him get together yet?" she asked Tifa while elbowing her and winking at her in an irritating fashion.  
  
"Yuffie, please don't mention that.that thing's name to me again, I hate him he is so ugh" Tifa said, exasperated that Yuffie had brought up his name. Tifa sighed in annoyance. It was bad enough to sit beside him twice a week. Now when she had no need to be near him, she had to put up with Yuffie's questions that pertained to him.  
  
"Okay, so what'd he do? It's to be something bad because right after English Lit. I personally saw you checking him out. Cloud is one of the hottest guys in the school - that is apart from Vincent. I heard he's single.something about that none of the girls here are cute or nice enough. Who knows, maybe you're the one. I mean, Strife doesn't exactly say stuff to people. What'd he do?" she asked with a speed worthy of the gods.  
  
Tifa marveled that Yuffie wasn't hyperventilating. She took a deep breath, "I wouldn't care if he was the hottest guy in the universe."  
  
Her heart contradicted her, 'oh but you DO care and he IS the hottest guy in the universe. Tifa, what are you talking about? You KNOW that you like him, you have this thing for him.if it was anything other than like, I would say that you lo-'  
  
"Cloud Strife is the most insensitive, rude, disgustingly sickening, incompetent jerk I've ever met in my entire life" she broke her own thoughts and said in the same low, whisper-like growl she had spoken to him earlier with, "I was wrong to answer him the way I did, but I saw it and I apologized, I apologized to him sincerely. I really meant it but he apparently doesn't recognize the meaning of the words 'I'm sorry' because I saw where I went wrong with the conversation, and I did mean my words, if I didn't mean them I wouldn't have said them. I hate him and that's that" she finished her statement, her eyebrow twitching in anger and her fists trembling with suppressed rage.  
  
Yuffie held her hands up in defeat, "okay, so my pal Tifa is livid with Strife, it's all good.I won't ask.but I have a pretty good idea about what happened" she said as they approached the top of the line.  
  
Tifa snatched the last chicken sandwich and a bottle of Snapple whereas Yuffie grabbed a slice pepperoni pizza and a V-8 Splash. They made their way to the cashier, paid for the food, and left the noisy cafeteria. Yuffie led Tifa down the footpath alongside the driveway, it was a nice quiet spot and they sat on the concrete flooring and waited for the others.  
  
A few minutes later, Alex and Joanne came down the pathway.  
  
"Hey Yuffie, what's happening? Hey Tifa - it's Tifa right?" Joanne said in her friendly voice as she sat down beside Alex.  
  
"Yeah, it's Tifa" she answered, while she absently crinkled the wrapper of her sandwich. She opened her Snapple and took a sip.  
  
Yuffie took a sip of her V-8 Splash and struck up a conversation, "Yo people, I was thinking.Tifa is our newest member of the group, so I was wondering if we could like, you know, go out to commemorate it."  
  
"I think it's a good idea Yuffie, Don't you think so Alex?" Joanne said as she took a sandwich out of her bag.  
  
"Yeah, it's a great idea. So where do you want to go - the movies? How about the mall?" he agreed enthusiastically.  
  
"What do say about it Tif - it's your choice" Yuffie said as she lifted her pizza to her mouth.  
  
Tifa took the sandwich out of its bag and seemed to be deep in thought.  
  
'Tif?' she wondered to herself, she was so new to this school and they had accepted her and spoke to her so familiarly to the point that they used the shortened form if her name.  
  
After a pause, she spoke up, "Sure, why not? How about we go to both, it IS a tough choice to pick between the movies and chilling at the mall. So maybe on Saturday we can go, I'll have to ask my parents though.I'm pretty sure they'll agree."  
  
"Yeah, it'll be so much fun; we can go shopping and stuff. Ooh I know, the first thing we'll look for is swimming stuff for our Biology trip. I can't wait" Joanne said happily.  
  
Alex's eyes lit up as he thought of going to swimwear store with Joanne to try on all types of swimsuits for his eyes to feast on.  
  
Serena, Ana and Chris sauntered lazily towards their usual spot. Greetings and introductions were exchanged and they all began to eat.  
  
Fifteen minutes later, when everyone was finished with their lunch, Serena playfully punched Alex in his side. Much to her dismay, he didn't even flinch.  
  
Being the childish teen she was, she pouted and crossed her arms. The rest of them laughed at her.  
  
Tifa thought she was adorable and she somehow reminded her of herself when she was younger.  
  
"Hey Serena, let me show you how to do a proper punch" she said as she motioned for her to come.  
  
Serena was there in a split second with big puppy-dog eyes.  
  
Tifa chuckled.  
  
Tifa took her hand in hers "first, you bend your fingers like this," she bent the younger girl's fingers firmly "then you fold your fingers down like this" she brought the bent fingers down to her palm "and then you bend your thumb, to curve over your other fingers. If you make a fist any other way, you'll end up hurting yourself more than your opponent," she explained while she too made a perfect fist.  
  
Then she punched an invisible attacker with much vigor, Serena was eager to try. Tifa held up her palms for her to punch and the eighth-grader punched. Tifa smiled and patted her on the back.  
  
"Good punch - you have potential. If you want, I can teach you a little self defense.if you want.so you won't be dependent on your brother. It's good to know how to defend yourself; I don't want you punching up your brother though. You should ask your parents or your brother if you want me to train you" Tifa offered the bouncy girl.  
  
"Tifa is a martial arts EXPERT, she knows practically every possible style" Yuffie explained to the group, "I wish I was as skilled as her, I only know how to use shuriken and kunai. Tifa is a master in like almost all martial arts, I think that's so cool," she rambled on.  
  
Tifa bent her head to hide her blush, "aw.Yuffie, you didn't have to say that, I mean I still have to finish my wushu training," she protested weakly.  
  
"Tifa, you don't have to be so modest, if you only have wushu to finish, that means you have mastered kung fu, karate, K-1 fighting, kick boxing, ninja arts, kendo, judo.and a whole ton of other styles, you have something to show off about" Ana stated with a grin. "If I were you, I would show off," she continued while smiling friendlily at her.  
  
"Yeah, I agree with Ana. Honestly I can only do a little bit of street fighting.I only know how to disarm people and stuff like that, Alex and me have been doing street fighting for a while now" Chris said while he ran his fingers through his shoulder-length black streaked with blond hair.  
  
Alex appeared to be pondering something with his little sister prodding him in the ribs for an answer. Apparently, he came to a decision and spoke up,  
  
"Tifa, if you train this little brat here," he indicated to Serena, "you are going to have to know how to deal with kids, she may be thirteen - and a genius at that, but she acts like an eight-year old. Oh and you have to make her promise not to practice what you teach her on me. If you're cool with these conditions, away with the brat" he said with a grin.  
  
Serena was in Cloud Nine when she heard that and she thanked her brother endlessly. Tifa smiled at Serena and the little girl beamed back.  
  
They spent the rest of their lunch hour chatting and eating. Tifa had exchanged telephone numbers with them and they all got the opportunity to know her better, she now went by Tif, the shortened form of her name.  
  
The bell signaling that the lunch hour was finished went off and the seven parted to their various destinations. Serena to the swimming pool - she had gym, Alex, Tifa and Yuffie to T.D. (A/N: Technical Drawing) Chris, Ana and Joanne to Computer Science.  
  
On their way to the Art studio - where the T.D. classes were, Alex, who had become close to her - and showed a brother-like personality to Tifa, struck up a conversation about his little sister - Serena.  
  
"Hey Tif, thanks for all you've done for Serena, I can see that she likes you a whole lot. You're a cool person, I'm glad that you're here because usually people reject her because she is.well, she has kidney problems and it kind of, well.it depresses her. She doesn't really want people to find out about it.and whenever they do find out, they forget about her. She looks up to you.I can see it. I think that you're a true friend," he said earnestly.  
  
"I had no idea.I'm sorry to hear it Alex. She reminds me a little of myself when I was her age, but she is a terrific kid. You are lucky to have her for a little sister. I personally think she is the cutest thing I have ever met. I won't treat her indifferently or anything. In fact, I'll love her as my own sister. I'm an only child but I've always wanted a younger sibling.Serena will be perfect" she replied while she flashed a sympathetic look at him.  
  
Upon reaching the Art studio, Yuffie grabbed three T-squares from a cupboard and tossed one each to Tifa and Alex. They caught the flying pieces of wood and plastic with ease. Yuffie kept one for herself and the trio made their way down to the middle aisle of the classroom to their chosen drawing boards. The others who came in did the same.  
  
A few minutes later, Cloud and Vincent came into the room.  
  
Time froze as the two "enemies" locked eyes.  
  
'This bastard is in my class - thank God I have Yuffie and Alex in this class, I think I would die from trying to hold back from killing him' she thought as she grit her teeth and clenched her fists. 'Okay Tifa, breathe.calm down.you can do this' became her silent mantra as she turned away and yanked Yuffie who was sitting to her left towards her.  
  
"Yuffie I have a favor to ask of you" she asked the energetic girl in a whisper.  
  
Yuffie whipped her neck around so fast Tifa had to wonder how she didn't have a serious case of whiplash. "Huh? What's the favor?"  
  
Tifa's wine-colored eyes glittered with anger as she jerked a thumb angrily to the golden-haired, aqua-eyed Cloud Strife who sat at the back of the classroom with his posse.  
  
"Yuffie, I want you to make sure that I don't kill that boy. I can't believe it, he is in all my classes so far," she said in a harsh, exasperated whisper.  
  
Yuffie nodded and struck up a conversation with Tifa and Alex to help try cool down a now furious Tifa. After twenty minutes, no teacher showed up.  
  
"You know, I'm really fed up with these teachers not coming to teach their damn classes," an annoyed Alex said.  
  
"I don't really mind, but after a while it really gets to me," Yuffie partially agreed while she was idling with another shuriken key chain, this one was one of the five dangling from her schoolbag.  
  
"Well, I agree with Alex here, it gets to me when they don't show up" Tifa said as she snatched one of the interesting key chains off Yuffie's schoolbag. "Hey Yuffie, where'd you get these, these are pretty cool" she said as she ran a long creamy finger along the edge of one of the blades.  
  
"I got a whole ton of them at home, you can have that if you want; everyone in our group has one. You should see my shuriken at home.I can't bring it to school or anything but its real cool. If you can come over to my house after school I'll show, I have kunai too," she offered.  
  
"Sure, no problem.hey Alex, what type of weapon can you use" she asked Alex.  
  
"Who me?" he asked her with an innocent look on his face.  
  
"Well, I don't know any other Alex here" she answered with a sisterly grin and a light punch.  
  
"Well.I play around with knives and daggers.I have a pair of twin broadswords at home - I do a little kung fu, that's it basically - that is apart from street fighting," he answered her.  
  
"That's really cool, swords - all types, used to be my favorite weapons at a time.but then I got attached to my gloves. I love kickboxing, I just feel so focused with it. It is best to be comfortable with the style you choose. Fighting just makes me feel so focused, you guys agree?"  
  
"Yeah, like if I had a bad day or something, I train with my shuriken and vent out my anger in a way that I'm not injuring anyone.the worst I can do is damage some property" Yuffie said with a laugh as she started sketching a portrait of Alex who had his head on the desk.  
  
"Yeah, I agree with Yuffie there, it's much better to get rid of your anger while training other than letting it out on people" Alex said while he traced random patterns on his drawing board.  
  
The three had nothing more to say so they sat in companionable silence and waited patiently for the remaining forty-five minutes to pass. Alex remained in his comfortable position and fell asleep. Tifa spent the time composing the notes and lyrics for a new song. Yuffie finished her sketch of Alex and was now sketching Tifa.  
  
Finally, the bell rang. A sleepy Alex woke up and yawned. Tifa put away her manuscript book and the precious book of her song creations. Yuffie gave them the sketches of themselves and tossed her pencil case into her bag.  
  
They all looked over their schedules and saw that they all had Geography so they had to go back to their homeroom. On the way back to the class, they met up with Joanne, Chris and Ana. The usual greeting was hard to make out due to the annoying buzz of voices so they used simple gestures to indicate acknowledgement. Alex casually carried Joanne's books, draped an arm around her shoulder, and dropped a kiss on her forehead.  
  
'They so love each other' was everyone's thought.  
  
"Aw come on people, not in the hallway, stuff like that is for locked classrooms - or even better yet, at home.or.or the movies and stuff. Please not here," said a rather embarrassed Yuffie said this as she saw some seventh graders catch a glimpse of the pair.  
  
"Y'all know better than that, and we're supposed to be setting an example for the little seventh graders, we are responsible eleventh graders who are capable of controlling our hormones," she continued.  
  
Everyone looked at Yuffie with shocked expressions, "That sounds awful strange coming from you Yuffie" said the shocked group of adolescents.  
  
"Okay, okay it did sound weird coming from me-" she said as Chris broke her off.  
  
"Yeah, you're right - you go on even worse than these two when you see Vincent, you go all gaga over him" he said with a chuckle.  
  
"People, let's go, we'll be late for Geo." Ana broke in before the spat could even begin and began to walk off with Tifa. The others dropped the argument and scrambled to catch up with them.  
  
They got to the class with no more of the friendly bickers and sat down, Tifa hadn't realized that they were all in the same homeroom, but was cheered nonetheless.  
  
'At least I won't have to worry about that Cloud jerk until Biology; we can sit where we want to at this school. I don't think I could survive another minute with him watching me. I can't stand him. He's got that attitude.that so turns me off. I have to admit though.he does have THE finest body and THE most amazing eyes and - and what am I doing thinking about that jerk' Tifa said in her mind as she took a seat beside Chris.  
  
The six sat together in the far right corner to the front of the class and sat there.  
  
A tall slender woman entered the room and introduced herself as Ms. Carroll. She took a seat at the teacher's desk and began dictating notes. The class - well at least most of them, frantically scribbled to keep up with the rapid pace that she had taken on. After note taking, they sat and "absorbed" what she was talking - all they knew, was that she was saying something about volcanoes.  
  
The bell rang to everyone's relief. The teacher, who had only been there for an hour or so, had already made herself a few enemies among the students. She called out a few pages for them to read and gave them an assignment. As soon as she was done, the class stampeded out the door.  
  
"Whew! It's like that woman wouldn't shut up or something. She's such a bitch," Yuffie muttered under her breath, "all who agree with me say 'I,'" she said, angry with the woman because she had given her a detention for no apparent reason.  
  
"I" was the loud echo of their voices as they made their way through the school gates.  
  
They waited there for Serena. A few minutes later, she was making her way to them. Yuffie, Ana and Chris walked alongside each other, whereas Joanne and Alex walked together, his arm draped around her waist. Serena made her way beside her brother and she pulled Tifa beside her and began to relay the day's events to them.  
  
They were taking a shortcut through the park and had stopped to get ice cream and they sat in small groups, Alex sat with Joanne at a picnic table. Yuffie sat with Chris on a large stone bench. Tifa, Serena, and Ana sat together under a huge oak tree. They chatted about random topics.  
  
"Hey Tif, which street do you live on?" asked Joanne who was sitting on Alex's lap and indulging in her ice cream.  
  
"Sovereign Ave, you guys can come over to my house if you want.my folks won't mind or anything" she offered "in fact, they'll be glad I made some friends and they won't be back until after six, so we're cool" she continued while she finished up her rather large ration of cookies-and- cream ice cream.  
  
"Sovereign Ave, that's a pretty high class area" Chris said while he unconsciously ran his fingers through his rich hair. It was a constant habit. One he had never been able to break.  
  
"Sure, why not?" Yuffie agreed cheerfully. The others nodded in approval as they too finished the huge masses of frigid ice cream.  
  
They left the park and were off to Tifa's house, it wasn't too far from the park. Upon reaching her house, (which was more like a mansion) they gawked.  
  
"Your house is huge!" an awed Ana enthusiastically said. The others agreed wholeheartedly.  
  
Tifa slid a key into the keyhole of the front door and motioned for them to come in. She indicated for them to sit in the rather large living room while she ran up the marble stairs. She dropped her bag in her room and left it.  
  
If they were amazed with the outward appearance of the manor, the interior was incredible. Expensive paintings adorned the walls. The white walls themselves - decorated with a beautiful golden trim - the contrast, stunning. The floor was of a gorgeous hardwood, polished to the point where their faces were visible. Elegant carvings were visible in all the right places. An intricate sculpture of an eagle added simple charm to the fancy living room.  
  
She ran down the upper hall somersaulted over the staircase, and crouched into a battle stance. Applause resounded through the Lockhart residence as Tifa sauntered casually to the kitchen and grabbed a few large bags of potato chips and other snacks. She arched one perfect eyebrow at them when they applauded; it was a silly peculiarity to her for them to approve of a simple somersault. It was something she did everyday and there was nothing special about it - not to her anyway.  
  
"Idiosyncratic" was the almost incoherent murmur that only Yuffie caught.  
  
"Hey! What'd you mean by that?" the short girl said in a quite indignant tone while she almost choked on her potato chips.  
  
"I find it weird that you are applauding over something that it as simple as a somersault.it's so easy,"  
  
"Oh." was all Yuffie could say after that explanation  
  
~*~they passed the time, doing homework and studying - with the occasional bickers~*~  
  
Tifa glanced at the clock, 4:45 "it's getting late people, don't you think you should be getting home?" she asked as she cleared up all the empty Lays Potato Chips® bags and the soda bottles.  
  
"Yeah, I guess we should" Chris said while he got up and stretched. The others murmured something similar. They decided to leave and thanked Tifa; 'see you later' and 'I'll call you' and 'see you tomorrow in school' were the words heard, decreasing in volume.  
  
Tifa waved one final time, closed the door and stalked to the shower where she relaxed under the soothing spray of warm water. Upon finishing her cleansing act, she turned on her CD boom box and played some calming classical music.  
  
A few minutes later, Tifa Lockhart was drifting in the peaceful void of dreams in the world between sleeping and waking.  
  
A/N: I Whoa.twelve pages.damn *sigh* Tifa is quite a vixen when she's mad ne? I have so many ideas for this fic and this chapter just flowed from my fingers. I have so many ideas for this fic, I am desperately in need of ideas for my Rurouni Kenshin fic.I need inspiration.bad. Well.I may not be updating for a while, but don't worry.I won't stop writing this fic. If you have any questions or comments, leave a review or email me at spiky_wong90@hotmail.com well.I am off to my bed, it's like after very late and I have so much to do tomorrow. I am so glad that you liked chapter 2, I hope you enjoyed this one because a lot of work went into this - also, this fic is far from finished.there are so many ideas I have for this. However, they are going to be incorporated into the plot later on. Please review and give me some feedback, I want to know what you think about it - of course your ideas are all welcome. So.I would appreciate you leaving me a review, tell me what you think. Thanks for reading! Oh and by the way, flaming is not at all a constructive way to express what you think. However, don't suggest any Aeris + Cloud pairing.I may add her in after a while, but to all you Cloud and Tifa fans like myself out there, it's going to be Cloud and Tifa all the way, so I'm sorry to all the Gainsborough fans. Aeris just irks me, like many people who don't like her, at first I thought it was the fact that she wears pink.pink sucks, but then when I played the game, I grew to like Tifa's character (not that way you perverts.) Anyway, please don't flame me about the pairing, I can change anything else in the fic but it remains Cloud and Tifa, will all that said, now I go to my bed.  
  
*~*~*~*~Click That Button*~*~*~*  
  
Black Chiney 


	4. Talk to Me

Strife and Lockhart- enemies or lovers?  
  
Disclaimer: I do not own Final Fantasy 7; it belongs to Squaresoft, Sony and other associated groups, don't sue, and even if you did, you wouldn't get anything, I'm a flat broke student, suing me would make no sense at all. I may not own Cloud and Tifa, Yuffie and Vincent. All original ideas and characters are mine to claim. No, I do not own the hot topic website, Lamborghini, Porsche, BMW, Mercedes, Road & Track or Motor Trend magazines, Linkin Park, I did not create Bailey's with milk . . . ah dammit, I don't own nothing but my room, computer and a comfortable bed that I will be jumping into in a few minutes. I do not even own the skill to produce an extra good fanfic.  
  
A/N: First, I am so sorry for this chapter being posted so late. I give my lovely reviewers a hearty high five. I hope you like this chapter, anyway . . . *Black Chiney grins as if she has something up her sleeve* too bad though, you won't see it until the next couple of chapters. *laughs mischievously* Feel free to leave comments, suggestions and you can email or IM me at - spiky_wong90@hotmail.com, anyway, here it is:  
  
Chapter 4  
  
*~*~*~*~Tifa's Evening~*~*~*~*  
  
After about an hour, Tifa woke up at the sound of a door opening. Her instinctive battle senses felt no intrusive qi, but sensed the pleasance of her parents. She got up quickly and glanced at her image in the mirror. She saw an attractive girl there; clad in a white spaghetti-strap top and a pair of low-rise jeans shorts. Tifa sighed and stood before the large mirror and brushed out her thick, long tresses of dark-chocolate hair. She treaded stealthily towards the living room.  
  
"Tifa honey how was school today? Make any friends?" her mother asked while she laid her handbag on the rack.  
  
"It was fine mom; I made a few - six to be exact. They came over to do some homework, they said that wanted to meet you guys but they had to go home early. Maybe you can meet them tomorrow if you come home early" she replied to her mother while she made her way to the kitchen.  
  
"That's great honey; it's wonderful to know that you've made some friends. You can invite them over for dinner tomorrow - if they can make it; what are their names?" she suggested while she took off her jacket and walked to the kitchen.  
  
"Well, there's Yuffie, she was the first one I made, and then I met the others: Joanne, Alex, Serena, Ana and Chris" she said while she too went to the kitchen and began skillfully slicing some vegetables for a salad.  
  
"Meet any cute and nice boys?" she asked with a laugh. She had always considered her mother cool. She was always telling her to get a boyfriend.  
  
"Mom!" she exclaimed with shades of crimson red, staining her porcelain cheeks. "I have my school to worry about first" she paused for a moment as though thinking deeply, "Okay, okay - I saw one extremely hot guy there," she confessed, unconsciously referring to Cloud.  
  
Tifa finished shredding the lettuce and reached for a tomato to slice.  
  
Tifa's mom chuckled knowingly, "Well that's great, be sure to invite your friends over for dinner tomorrow," she said while she took out the marinating meat from the refrigerator, "Oh - you should tell your father about your first day, you should see if he needs anything too" she added.  
  
"Sure" she agreed and aimed the knife for its block. It met its target with a sharp 'thunk.' Tifa left the kitchen and made her way past the living room, towards to her father's study. She slid the huge oak doors open and slipped silently into the large room.  
  
"Hi Daddy" she greeted her father as he looked up at the sound if the door opening. He smiled a greeting.  
  
"How was school Tifa?"  
  
"It was good, I made a couple friends. Mom says that I can invite them over for dinner tomorrow" she replied while she took a seat in one of the plush, velvet armchairs.  
  
"That's good to know," he said while began to type a document on the computer before him.  
  
"Would you like me to get anything for you Daddy?" she asked.  
  
"Yes, I think I need a drink. Nothing hard, at least not right now" he replied while he reached for a sheaf of typing sheets and proceeded to feed it to the printer.  
  
"How about a Bailey's with milk?" she suggested as she slowly got up.  
  
"That'll be just fine"  
  
Tifa exited the room to do her father's wish and made her way to the liquor cabinet. She took out a bottle of Bailey's and went to the kitchen for the milk and a glass. The chocolate-haired girl deftly and skillfully blended the drink. Its scent alone was alluring; she was tempted to take a sip. Growing up with her parents who were heavy drinkers, Tifa was skilled as a bartender. She could hold her alcohol too - it took a lot to get her drunk.  
  
Drink in one hand, she returned to her father's study. She entered the room and deposited the glass of thick, milky liquid onto a coaster on his desk. The drink was slightly swirling from the motion due to the walk to the room.  
  
Tifa grinned and said in a bartender-like accent, "One Bailey's with milk sir"  
  
"Thank you honey" he said while he took the glass and took a sip, "This is good" he continued, after he swallowed the interesting drink that tasted somewhat of chocolate. Its creamy consistency was nice and thick.  
  
She smiled in acknowledgement. Tifa personally thought that Bailey's with milk was the best in the lower category of alcohol potency, although she preferred the smooth flavor of sake. She had an irresistible temptation for anything oriental. She mumbled something about going to help her mom with the dinner and left the room, she strolled casually to the kitchen.  
  
Her mother was not in the kitchen.  
  
'Probably went to take a shower' she deduced.  
  
Tifa resumed her previous task of making the salad, when she finished that, she put some rice to steam. Her mother had already put the meat to roast. Tifa glanced at the kitchen clock, it was only a little after six. She set the clock to ring when the roast and the rice was ready.  
  
She left the kitchen ascended the marble stairs and went up to her room. She turned on her laptop and went online, seeing that no one was on her MSN Messenger, she signed out of it and checked her mail - none. She decided to check out the hot topic website. When she clicked on the new clothing available, she saw an adorable outfit and fell in love with it.  
  
"This is so cute!" she practically squealed as she saw it, "I have to get it; I'm going to order it. There is no way I am letting that go," she said to herself.  
  
Tifa ordered it and smiled radiantly. She absolutely loved that hot topic site, almost all of her clothes were ordered from it - and her parents were cool with it. To add to it, the ones she chose were always different from the style everyone was into, she was always the first to see - she was always on that site, checking out what was new. She saw some accessories that would match perfectly and ordered those too.  
  
The little 'ting' of the timer going off resounded through the mansion.  
  
Tifa quickly disconnected and went downstairs. She took the roast out of the oven and began to carve it, she set the table and placed the fresh salad onto the table and served the food. She called out to her parents that dinner was ready.  
  
She was pouring the water into glasses as her parents walked towards the dining room. They took their places at the table and began to eat.  
  
"Mom, I saw this adorable outfit a-" Tifa said only to be broken off by her mother.  
  
"- Did you order it honey?" she asked as she took a sip of water.  
  
"Yeah, I did. It should be here in about three weeks" Tifa responded.  
  
"I'm glad you ordered something, I was about to ask you if when was the last time you went to the mall, I was planning on dragging you there myself. It's been quite a while since you bought any clothes," she said with a laugh.  
  
"Actually, I was invited on a mall trip - Saturday coming, and I am supposed to go on a field trip to the beach next week Friday. Do I have your permission to go?" she asked them both.  
  
"Of course you can go" her father said, "Do you agree Lea?' he asked her mother.  
  
"Of course she can go, I think it's a wonderful opportunity, I'll lend you one of my credit cards. You can shop to your heart's content," she agreed with a motherly smile.  
  
Tifa thanked them with a hearty grin and finished the rest of her dinner. She excused herself and washed up her dish and the various cooking apparatus. She bid her parents goodnight and went up to her room.  
  
She sat on her bed and her crimson eyes wandered over the banners with her favorite anime characters printed onto them. Her eyes darted over the large decorative cupboard that held her cherished weapons and the countless medals and trophies won. Tifa lay in the comfort of her bed, thinking about many random thoughts. The first thing that popped up in her active mind was Cloud Strife.  
  
*~*~*~*~Cloud's Evening~*~*~*~*  
  
As he had returned from school, he saw a package for him in the mailbox of the large Strife manor. He had finished his homework and he remained in his room, slumped on his bed, reading the new Road & Track and Motor Trend magazines that had just arrived. He was reading all about the new Lamborghini Gallardo and tips on upgrading the Mazda RX-8. He lay back on his bed and his mind drifted to Tifa.  
  
"I wonder what she's doing now. Damn, she is just stuck on my mind. Well - who in hell wouldn't be thinking about her? With those sexy eyes and that gorgeous body- aw dammit, what wouldn't I give to get together with her?" he voiced aloud.  
  
He stared at the huge array of large swords that adorned the walls. Among the swords, many glossed and enlarged glamour shots of him, along with the large movie and anime posters that added the teenage look to the would-be plain blue walls of his room. He decided to go and take a shower. Glancing at the clock on the wall, he saw that it was six o' clock. Cloud entered the luxurious bathroom; he shed his clothes and relaxed under the calming mist of warm water. He felt the pent up tension melt away as he shampooed his thick, golden hair and swept away the uncomfortable sheen of sweat from his tanned skin.  
  
He emerged from the bathroom clad in naught but a blue towel, wrapped around his slender waist. His hair was dripping wet - he caught sight of himself in the mirror and he smirked cockily to himself. He was visualizing himself with Tifa and his smirk grew to a smile that would make Tifa melt; it was too bad she couldn't see it. Cloud sighed and reluctantly dismissed the beautiful image of Tifa's body from his mind. Ignoring Tifa's image in his mind was harder then he thought - he'd been imagining her in a very revealing bathing suit.  
  
After quickly toweling his hair, he donned a pair of khaki-colored shorts that reached mid-shin, his favorite shirt - a black T-shirt, decorated with the layout blueprint of a Lamborghini Diablo, and a web-like design ran over it. His hair was already drying to the natural spikes they dried to, he glanced at the gel and decided against it - gel was only to hold his spikes up properly. Satisfied with his look, he went downstairs and saw his mother opening the front door.  
  
He made his way to the door and pulled her into an embrace. Regardless of what others would say or think, he loved his mother dearly. His father had deserted them when he was only seven, so he had grown attached to his mother. As far as Cloud could see, his mother was doing perfectly fine without his father. She managed her own company and in Cloud's eyes, she was the best mom a guy could ask for.  
  
"Hey mom" he greeted her.  
  
"Hello Cloud honey, can you help me with these groceries?" she greeted in return and asked him while she indicated to the backseat of the silver Porsche 911.  
  
"Sure mom" he replied and made his way through the door.  
  
"Oh - Cloud, park it too," she said as she tossed the keys to him.  
  
He caught them with ease, and was on his way to the car. Cloud got the two massive grocery bags and walked briskly to the front door; he went to the kitchen and deposited the bags on the counter. With the keys in hand, Cloud grinned and practically flew through the door.  
  
A second later, the lovely sound of a revving Porsche resounded through the still evening air; Cloud stepped on the gas and drove the car towards the shed. The driveway was long - a half mile to be exact, but at the speed he went, he was in there in two seconds flat. The sweet sound of the brakes screeching to a sudden stop echoed through the huge yard.  
  
This was his mother's newest car; so far, it was his favorite. The exhilarating scent of the brand new car's leather interior was driving Cloud's senses over the edge. He began to think of Tifa again. He sighed and again dismissed her image from his mind. Cloud revved the engine again, approving the low, growl of the engine. He couldn't wait to get his license; he couldn't wait to get his own car. Instead of his previous favorite car, the Mercedes CLK, he wanted a dressed up silver BMW Z3. He could visualize himself with Tifa in it. He sighed again and just sat there in the car, thinking about cars and Tifa. Cloud stayed there for fifteen minutes, just thinking and constantly dismissing the image of Tifa each time his mind's eye made a depiction if her. For boredom's sake, he reversed the car, back to the front door and stepped on the gas once more. Satisfied with how far the needle went on the gauge, Cloud brought the car to an abrupt halt in the shed.  
  
He got out of the car as though he hadn't just driven a car at 80 mph in a built up area. Cloud grinned and sauntered casually back to the mansion He saw his mother in the kitchen, sleeves rolled up, slicing merrily away at some mushrooms and tomatoes.  
  
"I'm back mom," he said.  
  
"I'm surprised I didn't hear my car being driven all over the neighborhood" she replied with a grin.  
  
"Aw c'mon mom I'm not that bad - need any help?" he asked with a laugh.  
  
"No, it's okay. All I have to do is mash these potatoes"  
  
"Okay, I'll be up in my room then"  
  
"Alright, I'll call you when dinner's ready" she said while she sautéed the vegetables with some beef and let the mixture flambé in some white wine.  
  
"Sure" he replied.  
  
He went up to his room and turned on his mini-system, and put in Meteora - Linkin Park's newest CD. Cloud relaxed on his bed, drinking in the intense music and hurriedly scribbled the rest of his Geography and Biology homework. When he was finished with it, he took up his CD wallet and flipped through the pages of compact discs, all types of albums were in it, from techno to metal, j-pop to rock, instrumentals to hip-hop and R&B. There were movie soundtracks, DVDs and game discs. He voiced a random thought:  
  
"I need new CDs"  
  
"Cloud honey, dinner's ready!" Rebecca Strife's voice floated up the stairs to his ears.  
  
"I'll be there in a minute!" he yelled back as he switched off the mini- system and got up from his comfortable position. He made his way downstairs and to the dining room.  
  
He saw his mother setting the already elaborately decorated dining table.  
  
"I'm here," he said as he got the dishes, which were loaded with tempting food. He laid the dishes on the table and took his seat. His mother took her seat in front of him and they began to eat.  
  
"So how was school honey? Meet any new girls?" she enquired in a more sisterly fashion than any mother would.  
  
"School was good. I met this new girl; I really like her but. . ." he trailed off and stared into his dish.  
  
"But what honey?" she enquired, encouraging him to open up.  
  
"Well, we're both in all the same classes so far and well; we're Biology partners for the whole school year. The teacher had to go do something, and well I was trying to be nice and I tried to make small talk with her. She kinda answered me a little angrily and well, you know" he paused, "My temper kinda, well yeah" he begun his explanation as he hung his head in shame.  
  
"Continue" she coaxed.  
  
"Well, we kinda had an argument and I told her that I was only trying to be nice for a change and that people like her probably didn't understand what it means and, and well I know I was wrong to say it but it just came out"  
  
"Okay, you had a little argument, what was the outcome?" she asked.  
  
"She said something like she didn't need my friendship and that she didn't want my concern. Well, I said something like, 'now I know what they mean by people have pretty faces and bad character.' Then she told me that I should find someone else to be nice to and she told me to stay out of her life; then after a while she apologized to me and told me why she answered me like that" he said with a tinge of shame in his voice.  
  
"Okay, she apologized to you. This is the important part, did you accept her apology?" she said in her motherly tone.  
  
"No, I didn't accept her apology. I don't even know why - I ignored her apology and then she -" he said in a choked voice "- she told me that she didn't have to apologize to me and but she still had forgiven me. She said that if I didn't want to accept it, she didn't see the need to try making it up, then she told me that she hated me," he finished with a soft, hurt tone.  
  
"Look, Cloud honey, I see faults with on both sides of this argument. Let me guess, you feel bad about it and you want to make it up but you don't know how, right?" she asked, quite concerned for him.  
  
"Yeah"  
  
"Do you want to apologize to her Cloud?" she enquired  
  
"Of course I want to apologize to her. I-I feel so bad about it, and I can't stop thinking about her," he said, eager to find a way to make it up to Tifa.  
  
"Okay, what's her name?" she asked  
  
"Tifa Lockhart" he answered, savoring her name on his tongue.  
  
"Okay, Tifa was wrong to answer you like she did, but you were wrong to snap back at her. Do you realize that Cloud?"  
  
"Yes" he replied in an unusually soft voice. His malevolent pride could never rear its ugly head in his mother's presence.  
  
"This is going to be difficult, I know you want to apologize to her as soon as possible but this situation is delicate. Wait for about three weeks; you have to think about your apology, if you don't want her to push you away. Yes, it is a long time, but trust me, if you apologize right, it will all be worth it" she advised her son.  
  
"Three weeks? That is too long I-I'll go crazy. Tifa's so cute and she's kindhearted too, she apologized to me - and she didn't have to. I think I'm in love with her," Cloud said.  
  
"It's either three weeks and Tifa or one day and no Tifa, it's up to you Cloud honey," she said.  
  
"Okay, okay, but I don't know what to say. How do I put it? What do I do?" he said in defeat.  
  
"Well honey, you have to follow your heart, tell her what your heart tells you to say. I know that your temper will probably get in the way, but honey try not to get into any more fights or arguments with her. It would help if you just keep quiet, and be pleasant to her when you feel the time is right. Cloud, you are my son and I am very proud of you, I know you can do this. I want to meet this Tifa; she sounds like a terrific person, she's captured my son's heart, something very hard to do. As far as I remember, it's always been the girl to chase after you. Trust your heart Cloud, you'll get her, and when you do, don't ever let her go,"  
  
She put a hand over his heart, "Believe in this"  
  
"I will," he nodded in response.  
  
Cloud picked up his fork and resumed eating his meal, when a sudden thought struck him.  
  
"Hey mom, when can I go for my learner's?" Cloud asked, like a child asking for ice cream and cake.  
  
"On your birthday" replied, laughing at his eagerness for the license, "You just turned seventeen last month Cloud. You have an entire year to wait. Speaking of your license, what car do you have in mind? No roadsters or super cars for you - at least, not yet" she stated, taking a bite of mushroom.  
  
"I don't think I'm ready to drive a roadster - not just yet. I was thinking of getting something simple but cool - a Z3, silver - I want to dress it up, skirting and all - plus, it's a lot less expensive than a Ferrari or a Lamborghini- but if you don't mind, I wouldn't mind driving one" he said with a boyish grin playing on his lips.  
  
"Z3 sounds good. I'll think about it" she replied.  
  
"I can't wait to get it," his enthusiasm as of a child given permission to have cookies and candy for dinner.  
  
"I know Cloud, but you must have patience in all situations, just like your predicament with your beloved Tifa," she said, a motherly grin adorning her face.  
  
Cloud nodded and slowly finished his dinner.  
  
"May I be excused?" Cloud asked as he took up his cutlery and utensils  
  
"Of course you may honey" she replied.  
  
Cloud got up from the table and slowly went to the kitchen and deposited the apparatus into the sink. He began the boring task of washing the dishes and cookware. As soon as he was done, he bid his mother goodnight and went upstairs to his room.  
  
He collapsed onto his bed and lay there, thinking. A few minutes later, he fell into the peaceful void of dreams.  
  
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~  
  
~*~*~In Tifa's Room~*~*~  
  
"Cloud," Tifa muttered unconsciously.  
  
"Who's Cloud?" Lea Lockhart's voice queried.  
  
"Huh?"  
  
"Who's Cloud?" the voice came back.  
  
"Mom, do you remember when I told you that I saw a really cute guy at school?" Tifa asked, wanting to get the situation off her chest.  
  
"Yes, I remember"  
  
"Well, I need to talk to you about him. He is Cloud," she said, the cheer that was usually present in her voice - now absent.  
  
"Okay honey, go ahead," she said as she sat down beside Tifa, who was now in a sitting position.  
  
"Okay, it goes like this. . ."  
  
Tifa relayed the entire story to her mother. The occasional string of curses was unconfined about her idiocy.  
  
Lea Lockhart sat there and listened intently to her daughter's predicament. It was a new challenge for her, she proved it most interesting. Tifa - always caught up in her schoolwork, determined to make honor roll each term - if she wasn't busy with the copious amounts of work, she would be playing her piano. According to her, 'she had no time to mess around with relationships, her education mattered more' neither of her parents could say argue with that, but they couldn't help but wish she would act like a normal teenager with all the teen problems. It seemed as though the fateful day had finally come, Tifa was beginning to act like the average teenager.  
  
Normally, Tifa would have ignored the similar spats with boys she got into at her previous schools. Even if she hadn't ignored them, the stubborn boys would try to gang up on her - who only ended up in them getting the cream of the crop - Tifa's daily kick boxing training.  
  
After the grueling ten minutes Tifa took to convey the day's worth of events, Lea held her daughter in a motherly embrace. Tifa finally felt at ease with the story finally out. The pain of bottling it up slowly receded like the ebbing tide.  
  
"Tifa honey, I am so sorry. I'm afraid that horrible temper is from me - if it weren't for that nasty temper you gained from me, I honestly believe that you would be perfect. Cloud here sounds interesting - he seems similar to you in many ways; however I have to say that I find this relationship rather cute. They say that you always hurt the one you love, yet you would do anything for each other. But Tifa Lockhart, I forbid you from fighting with Cloud - is this understood?" Lea said while  
  
"I understand mom"  
  
"Good, Cloud is like you. I have no doubt about it, he will try to get you. Who wouldn't? You are a very beautiful girl; however, I don't want you to act as you did today. It was uncalled for, but I understand, Cloud's attitude probably got to you and you couldn't stand it. Give him some time; he is probably trying to figure you out. Right now, he could be wondering how to apologize to you. Maybe you two are destined, by the way your descriptions sound, you sound like you're attracted to him"  
  
Tifa remained silent.  
  
"Listen honey, it's a part of growing up. Some kids go through this when they are only twelve or so, just because you are sixteen, it doesn't mean a thing. You don't have to feel indifferent. What I see here between you and Cloud, is a major misunderstanding, you both need to communicate - but not right now; males tend to feel that communication isn't necessary. Yes, he was a little prejudice but I'm sure he didn't mean one word of it. However, I don't believe that you meant it when you said you hated him; I think that it was a natural reflex, a little harsh but I'm sure you didn't mean it. If he doesn't say anything to you for a while, don't feel anyway. He needs to figure you out; I have a strange feeling that Cloud is the one"  
  
"Hmm. . . I don't know. . .maybe. Anyway, mom I'm glad that you had the time to talk to me about Cloud"  
  
"Sure honey, anytime. Make sure you tell me what happens between you and Cloud, get some sleep now, you have school tomorrow"  
  
" 'Night mom" Tifa said while she settled down into her thick, down comforter"  
  
"Good night honey"  
  
Lea Lockhart slipped out of her daughter's room, flipping the light switch as she left. A smile adorned her face, her daughter was now the average teen.  
  
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~  
  
~*~*~Next Morning~*~*~  
  
Cloud woke up at the ungodly hour of 5:00 AM. An hour he had only dreamed of waking up. Unfortunately, this was no dream.  
  
"What the hell am I doing up at this hour?" he murmured to himself, glancing at his alarm clock as he ran slender fingers through his wild, unruly mop of spiky golden hair.  
  
He rubbed the sleep from his eyes and seized an enormous sword from a rack that held many similar swords. He made his way out the back door and did some warm-ups. He was quite awake now and was now wielding the large sword in intricate and dazzling cuts, spins and chops. Cloud was airborne for a second with the weapon spinning menacingly in his hands. In his descent, he brought the weapon down to face the earth, as though he were going to split a fissure into the ground. He fell into a battle crouch, the sword - mere centimeters away from the ground. Cloud was satisfied, the outsized weapon lived up to the nickname - Buster Sword, and it was actually a smaller version of the single Japanese Zanbattou. The weapon weighed an approximate hundred pounds. The inhumane, whopping weight alone was enough to scare away people, much less an individual even attempt to lift it up.  
  
He decided that his training for the morning was finished and stalked to the bathroom. Cloud took a cold shower and brushed his teeth. Upon emerging from his bathroom, clad in his plush, royal blue bathrobe, Cloud sat at his desk and stared at the laptop before him. He sat there, meditating a bit - shutting out all other thoughts, even Tifa and concentrated on clearing his overly confused subconscious.  
  
After the deep half an hour of meditation, he decided to get ready for school. Cloud felt like he could take on the world after the deep thought he had previously engaged in. He sighed and thrust his equipments into his schoolbag.  
  
"Math, History, English Language . . . God I hate these subjects" he said as he looked over his timetable. "At least I have P.E. today," he muttered under his breath.  
  
He took out a pair of heavy blue jeans and a white T-shirt with some sapphire graphic lettering on the back, saying ZUM with a picture of a blue McLaren F1. He put on a pair of blue and white Adidas sneakers. Glancing at the clock, he saw that it was six thirty. Cloud grabbed a pair of basketball shorts and another T-shirt and tossed those into a gym bag along with a towel. He went downstairs and dropped the bags onto the huge armchair in the living room.  
  
"Good morning Cloud, you're up early" his mother's voice broke the silence.  
  
"Morning mom" he said as he made his way to the kitchen.  
  
"I baked some blueberry muffins, they're on the rack; help yourself to them" she called out to his retreating form.  
  
"Sure, thanks mom" he replied.  
  
Cloud made a cup of coffee and had two of the muffins. He downed a glass of orange juice and glanced at his watch, five minutes to seven.  
  
'Better leave now, I don't want to be late again' he thought He caught sight of his mother, who was now dressed in a navy blue business suit, sipping on a cup of black coffee. She held a muffin and an apple in a paper napkin in her hands.  
  
"Cloud honey, do you need a ride to school?" she asked while she took a bite of her muffin.  
  
"Nah . . . I'm okay, I need the exercise anyway. I'll only make you late" he declined and opened the door for her.  
  
"Okay honey," she said as she kissed him on the cheek and thanked him for opening the door.  
  
"See you later mom," he said as he too headed out the door and locked it.  
  
Cloud walked casually to school, listening to his Discman, he was listening to Evanescence's Fallen. He turned the corner of his street and came across his longtime best friend, Vincent.  
  
"Yo Vince" he greeted him with a hearty high-five.  
  
"Yo" Vincent replied.  
  
"What's up man?" Cloud enquired, seeing that Vincent was not his normal self.  
  
"I've got something on my mind" he replied curtly  
  
Cloud knowing Vincent for his almost entire life, knew that if something was on his mind it would have to be a girl.  
  
"Who is it this time?" Cloud asked with a slight grin on his face.  
  
"Yuffie Kisaragi" was his simple reply.  
  
"Kisaragi . . . you mean the ninja?" Cloud pondered for a minute.  
  
"Yeah, that's her" he replied as he absently kicked a pebble from the sidewalk.  
  
"Vince, Yuffie's been going to the same school as us since third grade and you've never even spoken to her man, what's with the sudden attraction towards her?"  
  
"Her soul is calling to me," Vincent said in his low voice  
  
Cloud remained silent; whenever Vincent was like this is, it was better to stay out of it and just let him be. The two walked in silence to the direction of their school.  
  
As they approached their high school, Cloud caught sight of Tifa walking with Joanne, Serena and Alex. She was wearing a black No Fear T-shirt, which was tied in a knot at her midriff, exposing her toned, flat stomach. Her shirt had red lettering, which read, 'FASTER THAN THE SPEED OF FRIGHT' the sleeves were pulled up, leaving her arms bare and the little white No Fear logo decorated the top left corner of the shirt. She wore a pair of blue hipster jeans, which flared at her ankles with slits running up to her knees, showing off her toned legs. Her long hair was tied in a half ponytail with a crimson band, leaving some of the rich, dark chocolate strands to form a ring of spikes.  
  
Cloud could have stared at her for the entire day that is if Vincent's constant elbowing hadn't made its painful presence known in his ribcage.  
  
"What are you staring at?" Vincent asked out of sheer curiosity.  
  
"Tifa Lockhart," he replied as though in a dream.  
  
"Let's go man" Vincent urged his friend.  
  
Cloud snapped out of his trance and muttered a 'yeah, sure, whatever' and began to walk towards the eleventh grade block. Vincent opened a locker and dropped his second bag into it. Cloud too went to his locker and tossed his Adidas gym bag in. The two walked casually to the classroom with girls gawking after them, but never seeming to realize that Cloud and Vincent were ignoring them.  
  
Both of them had problems with the girls who were holding their hearts, Cloud's predicament with Tifa, and Vincent's 'soul-calling' Yuffie.  
  
They all somehow made their way to the classroom and participated in the usual, daily routine - answering to the register, assigned duties, lectures . . . which all boiled down to four words: A LOAD OF CRAP.  
  
Since it was Tuesday, the day with the long homeroom period, the students of 11/56 took the opportunity to chat with their friends.  
  
Tifa Lockhart turned around to get something out of her bag and felt eyes on her. She looked around to see a very handsome Cloud Strife looking at her. Eyes seething with an unknown emotion, which seemed to be hate. The two glared at each other, forgetting anything said about each other before.  
  
A/N: A bit of a cliffhanger, yes, I know, it's a very long and boring chapter. I have nothing much to say, except that I'll try my best to get the next chapter out soon. I have all the ideas ready but I need time to type it . . . these days, all I have time to do is homework - yes the horrible thing that my teachers love to kill me with. Anyway, I need to get some sleep . . . please review, email, IM me, whatever. I would love to hear what you think of my fic.  
  
*~*~*~*~Click That Button~*~*~*~*  
  
Black Chiney 


	5. Just Another Day

Strife and Lockhart- enemies or lovers?  
  
Disclaimer: I do not own Final Fantasy 7; it belongs to Squaresoft, Sony and other associated groups, don't sue, and even if you did, you wouldn't get anything, I'm a flat broke student, suing me would make no sense at all. I may not own Cloud and Tifa, Yuffie and Vincent, but all original ideas and characters are mine to claim. Any brand names, places, or any other similar entities do not belong to me; I use them for the sole purpose of writing this fanfic and I make no profit from them.  
  
A/N: Thank you so much for the support by putting up with that extra boring chapter. I apologize for all those terrible mistakes in chapter four; I had absolutely no time to check for that. I think I need someone to proofread my fic, if anyone would like to do this for me, let me know in a review or an email. EXTRA long chapter to make up for the uhh . . . weeks I didn't update. By the way, the OOCness began last chapter and it continues. Anyway, this chapter should be better than the last. Oh yes, YUFFENTINE ALERT!  
  
Warnings: Do NOT read if you are sensitive to obscene language and violence.  
  
Here it is:  
  
Chapter 5  
  
With much difficulty, Cloud averted his eyes from Tifa. It just seemed like every time he was near her, he was an entirely different person. A person who hated her, he didn't know how he could possess so much hatred for her yet love her so much.  
  
"Jerk," Tifa whispered almost incoherently, venom laced her voice.  
  
"Bitch," Cloud's equally venomous tone spat back.  
  
Cloud mentally kicked himself for forgetting what his mother had told him. The two turned their backs to each other and resumed the broken off conversations with their friends.  
  
~*~*~*~*~  
  
"Hey guys, my mom invited you all for dinner at my place tonight," Tifa informed them while she idly etched her name into her geometry set.  
  
"That's cool, what time do we go?" asked Alex, who was playing with a lock of Joanne's long ebony hair.  
  
"Dinner starts at six-thirty, you should be there by six" Tifa's replied.  
  
"What kind of clothes do we wear? Your parents aren't the whole formal suit and gown type of people right?" asked an interested Yuffie.  
  
"They wouldn't care about what you wear. As long as you don't look like a pimp or a slut, they're okay with you" Tifa replied with a laugh, "Jeans and a T-shirt or top is good"  
  
"Your parents sound cool" said Ana who was sitting on Chris' desk. Even though Chris and Ana weren't together or dated, they had an undeniable connection. They were the perfect description for best friends. The others all agreed that one day, the best friend thing would give way and the two would start dating.  
  
"Yeah, they are" replied Tifa.  
  
"People, this is your class prefect. Her name is Tanya Williams" Mr. Wilshire's voice broke the buzz of voices as he pulled forward a girl with long dirty-blond hair. She looked like a teacher, the people that already knew her groaned. She was the worst prefect one could get . . . she was so . . . strict.  
  
They acknowledged her and the chatter continued. Yuffie swung the conversation around to a topic they all loved: CARS . . .  
  
~*~*~*~  
  
"Uh-uh, the Evo7 can way out power an RX-7," argued Yuffie.  
  
'I'm telling you, the RX-7 and the Evo7 are basically the same," Chris calmly stated to a protesting Yuffie.  
  
Everyone knew that when it came to cars, you could not oppose Chris. His dad owned a garage and Chris was the best employee they had there. If he says it goes, it goes. However, today Yuffie felt antagonist. Today she wanted to defy everything; which explained the reason why her normally slicked back hair, was now spiked up, defying gravity itself.  
  
"People, I'm telling you, I set up an eleven-second Evo7 in GT," Yuffie pressed.  
  
"I set up a ten-second RX-7," Chris' calm reply came.  
  
"Dammit Yuff, you can just listen to a RX-7 and know that it can beat an Evo" an exasperated Alex put in. He was getting bored with this argument.  
  
"You too 'Lex?" a shocked Yuffie screeched.  
  
The bell rang, signaling that the long homeroom period was up and that Math had begun. Alex, Joanne and Ana sighed loudly in relief. Tifa and Chris rubbed their temples in frustration. Tifa had put up with a whole fifteen minutes trying to convince Yuffie that the Mazda did indeed out power the Mitsubishi. She had given up and Chris had begun TRYING to drill the fact through Yuffie's extremely thick cranium.  
  
At the sound of the bell, all conversation ceased and the students of 11/56 rummaged into backpacks for the dreaded Math books. The annoying click of high heels neared the classroom and a short woman entered the room. She wore a crisp white collared blouse and a navy blue skirt; she looked like misery itself.  
  
They all stood up and awaited her salutation and introduction.  
  
"Good morning class" she greeted them in a serious, monotone voice, "My name is Ms. Francis"  
  
A greeting was muttered in return.  
  
"Sit please"  
  
The sound of scuffling feet and furniture echoed through the classroom.  
  
"Okay people, I'm going to give you a quiz. I expect a hundred percent from every one of you. The purpose of this quiz is to test your abilities - so I can know where to start with you," she explained as she slid out a sheaf of paper from a file jacket, "Please get out your instruments and begin as soon as you receive the papers"  
  
Incoherent muttered curses were audible as the papers were handed back and forth the room. The scratch of pen on paper with the occasional groan and sigh, were the only sounds heard.  
  
~*~*~*~*~  
  
"Okay people, you've been at it for three-quarters of an hour, round off your last answer, look over, ensure your names are on it and pass it up. I hope that every last one of those answer sheets has every problem correct" the teacher's voice broke the chorus of groans. This only brought more groans.  
  
Some frantically scribbled in random answers. Others lazily flipped through the binder sheets that contained unintelligible scrawls of numbers, letters, signs and a lot of whiteout. Some neatly stacked their papers together and passed them up, while some sent up blank answer sheets along with the question paper.  
  
"I will begin to correct these papers now, please do pages forty-five to forty-seven in your text," the teacher's monotone voice cut through the low murmur of chatter.  
  
Yuffie swore something under her breath about teachers trying to kill her before her time came. The others smothered their amusement and began the work.  
  
~*~*~*~*~  
  
Ten minutes later, the sweet sound of the bell ringing was a relief. It was so relieving because the class has grown restless and had already come to hate Math class. The scramble for the door was a mad dash of teenagers, eager to get away from the strange new teacher.  
  
"Whew! Thought her class 'd never end!" a boy with messy brown hair exclaimed while he opened his locker.  
  
"Got that right Jay" agreed Yuffie as she too went to her nearby locker to get out her English Language text and left to go to 10/46, a tenth grade classroom on the second floor.  
  
She met up with Tifa and they walked towards the classroom; Joanne, Alex, Chris and Ana had a different teacher so they went down the ninth grade block towards 9/36.  
  
"Yo Tif, what do you say about that math teacher?" inquired a bored Yuffie as the two sauntered towards their class.  
  
"I think she's weird, her attitude irks me. She expects too damn much from us, I hate teachers with overly high expectations"  
  
"Yeah, she's freaky . . . don't know how to dress either" Yuffie said, then muttering something like 'red lipstick on one lip don't go' and 'her outfit makes her look like a security guard'  
  
Tifa laughed heartily.  
  
The two entered the classroom and took seats in the far corner end if the room. Tifa slung her bag across the back of her chair and sat down abruptly; Yuffie did the same.  
  
The rest of the class stampeded in like the devil was after them. Reason for doing so: the principal was on the corridors, blank suspension and detention slips in hand.  
  
When Cloud ran in, Tifa's heart skipped a beat. His face - slightly flushed from the sprinting. She hadn't took real notice of what he was wearing but now she found herself engrossed in the intensity of the rich azure he was decked out in. She found it difficult to tear her gaze from him. Luckily, her bangs were swept across her eyes making it almost impossible to tell that she was looking at him.  
  
A tall, male teacher entered the room and as usual, the pandemonium came to a sudden halt.  
  
"Good morning class, my name is Mr. Jonas, please be seated," he said in a smooth voice.  
  
They sat down quickly; he seemed interesting.  
  
"Please reply to your names as I call them," he said as he took out a large sheet of paper with neat writing. He proceeded to call the names.  
  
When he had finished, he spoke, "Well, this term we will be doing a book of poetry. Yes, I know that poetry falls under the category of Literature but I am looking for something different. I want you to be able to write beautiful essays, short stories and poetry. You, you are the future of this nation, I wish to see some famous authors come from this very room," he said with much feeling as he handed out copies of the poetry text they would be using for that term.  
  
"Please, read the first poem and answer the questions that follow"  
  
The classroom was silent as the eleventh graders got down to work.  
  
~*~*~*~*~  
  
The bell signaling that the double period of English Language had ended and the lunch hour had begun rang clearly above the pulsating sounds that the teenage vocal cords made.  
  
"Okay, please do the next two poems for homework. It's to be handed in on binder sheet for our next meeting," Mr. Jonas said while he swiftly arranged his belongings into a neat pile before him.  
  
"Yes sir"  
  
~*~*~*~*~*~  
  
Tifa and Yuffie left the room and met up with the others on the corridor. They exchanged greetings and high-fives, moved towards the school cafeteria, and scrambled for a place in the line. As soon as they got their lunch, they slid through the railing by the side of the cafeteria and cut through the lawn and down the pathway.  
  
"Whew! I don't think that I'm going to like Tuesdays in this class. Math for the first double period, hell naw!" said Yuffie as she sat down and wolfed down her sandwich.  
  
"Damn straight," was the instantaneous agreement from Ana and Chris.  
  
"I hope we get a cool History teacher, our English teacher is cool," said Yuffie.  
  
"Yeah, he seems interesting" Tifa agreed while she drank some water.  
  
Tifa told Serena that she had been invited to have dinner at her place tonight; the little girl was delighted. They spent the remainder of the lunch hour talking about any possible thing that came to mind.  
  
~*~*~*~*~  
  
"Let's go, we have to line up to go back to class," Joanne announced while she put her Discman back in her bag. Alex took her hand and gently helped her up.  
  
"We have to line up?" a confused Tifa thought aloud.  
  
"Yeah, we line up according to form and class in different locations. We eleventh graders line up in the corridor by the eighth grade block. We didn't do it yesterday because there were no sixth formers or prefects at school yesterday - the prefects are in charge of that, they came back today. Prefects wear a little gold badge with their name on it. It's the only way you can tell them apart from the student body. Unless of course, you know who's a prefect from who's not. There are a few sneaky ones though, they don't wear the badge, when you tell them off, they flash the badge in front of you and then you get an order mark or a detention . . . evil prefects, this year's are the worst" Ana explained while she ruffled Chris' hair - just to annoy him.  
  
"I see . . . this school is interesting, a lot different from all the other schools I've been to" Tifa noted.  
  
"Well people, let's go. Our prefect is Tanya . . . God she's annoying," Chris said while he mercilessly tickled Ana to get her back for ruffling his hair while muttering a 'don't mess with the hair . . . this is what you get for messing with the hair'  
  
"Yeah, let's go"  
  
The six eleventh graders went by the eighth grade block while the single eighth grader went towards the path by the cafeteria to the already forming lines.  
  
As soon as Tanya gave them the signal to go, they filed towards the class.  
  
Yuffie slung her bag across her chair and rummaged for the huge History text and her notebook. She sat down and slammed the books down. The others did something similar - only a tad more refined than Yuffie.  
  
~*~*~A Half Hour Later~*~*~  
  
"I am sick of these damn teachers not coming to class now. For crying out loud, I'm in the year I consider most important - eleventh grade, the year I take the most important exams of my life and these damn teachers ain't showing up to teach their damn classes. Couldn't they have done this when I didn't need them as much as I do now - like in ninth or tenth grade?" an overly exasperated Yuffie screeched.  
  
"Got that right," Joanne agreed while she turned the page that she was reading. Since no teacher had come, she had decided to read ahead, devouring the information paragraph by paragraph and page by page.  
  
"Kisaragi, I need to talk to you," a smooth deep voice said, a voice belonging to none other than Vincent Valentine.  
  
Yuffie froze.  
  
"Go on Yuffie, maybe it's your chance," Ana whispered encouragingly to the smaller girl. She knew how much and how long Yuffie had liked Vincent.  
  
"S-sure" she stammered in reply as she walked towards the back of the classroom.  
  
"That's an amazing hairstyle," Vincent said while she approached.  
  
Yuffie could have sworn that she felt herself heat up to the ears. Vincent complimented her bizarre hairstyle.  
  
"Uhh . . . thanks Vincent. Err . . . what do you want to talk to me about?"  
  
"Look Yuffie, I've known you since third grade and I have always felt the need to try and get to know you better. I find that I don't know much about you - nothing other than you are a beautiful Shinobi. I want to change that, I want to know you better," he explained, while he cupped her chin into his fingers.  
  
Yuffie could have fainted on the spot.  
  
"I berate myself for not realizing sooner how much I wanted to get to know you" he continued, "Yuffie; will you accompany me to dinner on Friday night at the Chez Pascal?"  
  
"Err . . . Friday night? S-sure I'll go" Yuffie stammered, her voice sounded like her tongue had been dipped into a vat of peanut butter. The others would have laughed at the high squeaky pitch of her voice until their sides stung.  
  
Vincent smiled reassuringly at her.  
  
"Thank you for accepting my offer Yuffie, I promise you won't regret it," he said as he slowly grasped her hand and interlaced his fingers with hers. "I'll need your address. Is eight good?"  
  
"Eight is perfect," Yuffie said, relieved that her voice had returned to its normal tone. Vincent let her fingers go and she tore a neat square of paper from a sheet she pulled from her pocket. Yuffie neatly wrote her address and telephone number:  
  
Yuffie Kisaragi -  
  
Address: 165 Queen's Crescent Telephone: 397-4629  
  
She handed him the small slip of paper. He smiled at her again and thanked her. Yuffie gave him a nervous smile and a soft 'you're welcome'  
  
"Hey Yuffie come here for a minute!" a voice broke through the uncomfortable tension that was building up between the two.  
  
"Uhh . . . Vincent, I guess I'll talk to you later," Yuffie said.  
  
"Sure, I'll talk to you later Yuffie," he responded, savoring her name on his tongue.  
  
He watched as her small frame turned and went in the direction of her other friends.  
  
"What did he want to talk to you about?" Ana asked in a soft voice so that only Yuffie could hear her.  
  
"Vincent asked me out on a date," said a still-surprised Yuffie, as she sat down on her chair, next to Ana, trying to catch her breath.  
  
"It's about time" Ana said with a sisterly smile and an embrace. She was happy for her friend.  
  
Yuffie told Ana the details of the short conversation that Yuffie had waited years to happen.  
  
"Oh my gosh! Yuffie, what are you going to wear? Today is Tuesday; your date is on Friday, we can't go to the mall in the week. You're going to the Chez Pascal, you need to dress formally - all you ever wear is shorts and tank tops. We have a major problem," Ana said in a mad torrent of words as she realized the major problem.  
  
"What do you think I should wear?" Yuffie countered, while playing with her ever-present shuriken key chain.  
  
"Okay, how about you come over to my house after school on Friday, I get you ready and we can have Chris carry you home for Vincent to meet you?" she suggested.  
  
"I don't see why not," Yuffie agreed, forgetting her earlier vow, to defy everything for one day.  
  
"Great! I have the perfect outfit, you are so lucky that we both wear the same size. Maybe we could have Tif, Jo, and 'Rena come over to help us," Ana said, eager to give Yuffie a makeover, with the others over, it would make it more fun.  
  
"Sure, I think it's a great idea" Yuffie said, a wide smile adorning her face.  
  
"Hey, you never know, maybe you and Vincent could get together; after all, he said he wanted to know you better," Ana said with heavy emphasis on the 'know'  
  
"Hah! Fat chance - Vincent Valentine wants to go steady with Yuffie Kisaragi, as if!" Yuffie said.  
  
"You never know Yuffie, you never know," Ana said.  
  
~*~*~*~*~  
  
"Damn, school is so boring," Chris said as he flipped through his History text and ran his long fingers through his hair.  
  
"Damn straight," Alex agreed.  
  
"Whoa, 'Lex . . . what did you do to yourself man?" Chris asked as he saw Alex sitting on the most contorted position in his chair.  
  
"Nothing," was his simple answer.  
  
His back was on the chair's seat and his right leg was folded under his left one. He had his book on his chest and had the most pitiable look on his face. Chris thought he looked like a professional bum.  
  
"Jo, your man looks like a professional bum," Chris voiced the thought, laughing off his head.  
  
"Well, he's got to be just about the cutest bum ever," she retorted, smirking deviously at Alex.  
  
The only thing Chris heard after that was his own jaw snapping shut.  
  
Tifa and Joanne doubled up in laughter.  
  
~*~*~*~*~  
  
"We have gym now!" exclaimed an excited Yuffie as the bell for the final double period sounded.  
  
The whole class seemed to behave in a similar outburst at the bell. There was a scramble to get to the lockers in the hallway; frantic teenagers shoved each other out of their ways to get to their gym bags. Minutes later, they seemingly appeared out of thin air into the locker rooms up at the distant summerhouse, each fighting for a stall.  
  
~*~*~*~*~  
  
"You look nice Tifa," a boy named Gary complimented her, looking lustfully at her as he caught sight of her small baby blue tank top and navy blue tights.  
  
Cloud saw this, he wanted to go and punch Gary's lights out for looking at Tifa like that.  
  
"Okay, y'all are gonna run a little, when you're through running, come back to the summerhouse, I will assign your gym partner and we will do some basics" Ms. Blake said, as soon as they were all ready.  
  
"Let's go people! Ten laps around the field pronto!" yelled the teacher.  
  
The class of thirty-eight ran their ten laps around the field. When they were done, many were hyperventilating; they went inside the large summerhouse and awaited further instructions.  
  
"Okay, let's find you all some partners . . ." Ms Blake said as her eyes swiftly darted through the names on the register. "Kisaragi . . . Valentine - pair up. Yee . . . Cheng - pair up. Lockhart . . . Strife - pair up . . ." she called out the pairings until everyone was in a pair.  
  
Tifa fumed when she was Cloud's partner, she didn't want to be partners with him again, ESPECIALLY since this was GYM. She reluctantly moved towards him.  
  
"Okay, let me tell you beforehand, next week is swimming, we will alternate swimming and regular gym each week," Ms Blake explained curtly.  
  
Inside, Cloud was cheering and grinning like there was no tomorrow. He got to see Tifa in a bathing suit sooner than expected - was he happy or what? Tifa was horrified and wished that she could just seep through the floor.  
  
"Okay, I want to test the girls' flexibility. I need participants for the upcoming gymnastics tournament and new members in the club. People, cooperate with each other; girls, I need you to do a crab - boys please support them"  
  
(A/N: For those of you who don't know what a crab is, it is one of the most basic parts of gymnastics. Your legs and arms support your bodyweight when you arch your back downwards. The palms of your hands and your feet are supposed to be flat on the floor . . . well that's how I can describe it ^^)  
  
Tifa deftly followed the teacher's instructions and slowly arched her back downwards and pressed her palms to the tumbling mat. Cloud wound his hands around her waist, giving her unnecessary support. She blushed to a crimson shade. Tifa was very flexible and didn't need the help, but she couldn't help but inwardly like the contact.  
  
"Looking good Tifa" Ms Blake's voice praised the crimson-eyed girl. "Can you tumble?" she asked.  
  
"Yes ma'am," Tifa replied.  
  
"Come on, show us some of your moves," she encouraged, indicating the empty tumbling mat in front of the class.  
  
~*~*~*~*~  
  
Tifa did a perfect tumble down the mat and landed in a fancy stance. She came back down, doing three back flips, two somersaults and finished with another three back flips. Applause resounded through the summerhouse, some of the 'popular people' looked at her in disdain, jealous of the new transferee's talented abilities.  
  
"Congratulations Tifa, you are qualified for the gymnastics team - you're also going to participate in the tournament"  
  
~*~*~*~*~  
  
"Woo! Gym is greatest class ever!" Yuffie yelled as they finished up for the day and went towards the locker room. "Well, next to lunch that is," she continued.  
  
"Yeah, at least your partner isn't the biggest jerk in the universe" Tifa muttered darkly under her breath, remembering how Cloud had his hands on her waist.  
  
She hated, yet loved the memory. It would have been a sweet memory if only she had held her sharp tongue. For now, it would be the single bittersweet memory the two shared - for now.  
  
"Lighten up Tif! You're partners with Cloud in two classes - he is the hottest guy at this school - next to my baby 'Lex. Do you know how many people are dying to be in your position?" Joanne said, as soon as she heard Tifa's complaining.  
  
Tifa never answered. She grabbed her towel and headed for the shower.  
  
The other three girls found empty showers for themselves and they too, rinsed off the uncomfortable sheen of perspiration from their bodies. The sound of showerheads spraying water resounded through the locker room.  
  
Tifa emerged, clad in her black T-shirt and jeans. She was brushing out the damp, chocolate tresses. Shortly, the others came out, doing something similar.  
  
"Well if it fucking isn't the whoring bitch herself. Ms. Tifa Lockhart," a voice said, belonging to none other than the slut queen: Kathleen Johnson. (A/N: Read Chapter 2 if you don't remember her)  
  
"Who are you calling a whoring bitch?" Tifa calmly asked.  
  
A few more girls came out to see the brewing fight.  
  
"None other than yourself, you're a fucking whore - clinging to my Cloud with your filthy self," Kathleen spat, emphasizing on 'my Cloud' and smirking with her 'crew' of whores like herself: Terri, Maki and Mai.  
  
Silence was apparent. Yuffie's fingers inched their way to a hidden pocket in her shirt - she carried eight kunai with her and she was planning to aim them straight for Kathleen's eyes. Joanne's hands deftly found their way to a gaiter at her knee; she slowly drew out a small butterfly knife. She was always angry with the slut queen, more so today; the bitch was picking a fight with her friend.  
  
"Listen to me Johnson, you don't fucking call Tifa Lockhart a bitch or a whore and you most definitely do not call me filthy if you know what's good for you. I don't give a fucking damn about 'your Cloud' so get your scrawny ass away from me before I do something we both regret" Tifa said, in an icy tone; her eyes seething with an angry flame.  
  
Kathleen attempted to shove Tifa away from her, but Tifa anticipated it and caught her arms. She twisted them sharply. If Tifa twisted her hands a mere centimeter more, the sickening crack of a broken bone would have been heard.  
  
"Don't fuck with me Johnson" Tifa said in a voice so cold, if it were possible would have frozen an ocean. She let go abruptly and shoved her forcefully back to the direction of her 'crew'  
  
Kathleen screamed, "You broke my nail! You are so going to pay for that!" the air headed slut exclaimed.  
  
"Oh, I'm so sorry. Did I break your 'oh-so-expensive' plastic nails? Well guess what, I broke another one" Tifa said, sarcasm dripped from her voice. She swiftly grabbed the slut's hand and snapped another long stalk of the polished plastic in two.  
  
"Grow your own nails, nail extensions are so last year," with that, Tifa left the locker room with Ana, Yuffie and Joanne.  
  
"Frigging bitch" Tifa muttered as she left the summerhouse.  
  
"Tifa, I had no idea you were so aggressive! Kathleen had that coming for a long time; sluts like her have no right to accuse you of that crap. Damn, girl I would never want to get into a fight with you" Ana exclaimed, as soon as the fact was established that Tifa was okay.  
  
"Nobody would want to get in a fight with me Ana, nobody" Tifa muttered darkly.  
  
"Note to self: don't ever piss Tifa off" Yuffie said aloud.  
  
"Don't worry Tif; we back you all the way. I personally think that you should have punched her lights out. She is so nasty - trying to call you a whore when she is the slut who sleeps with ten guys in two days. I'm glad it wasn't me, I would have stabbed her to death, gotten expelled and get sent to juvenile court" Joanne said, flashing her knife out, "I'm glad I still walk with this, experience tells me to have a weapon with me all the time"  
  
"Yeah, I was going to throw these in her eyes," Yuffie said, she too flashing her weapon.  
  
"Thanks guys. Promise me something?" Tifa said gratefully, putting back on her smile.  
  
"Anything," the three girls replied.  
  
"Don't tell my parents about this"  
  
"No way! I would never let my mom know about that, so why should your parents know?" Yuffie exclaimed, "As long as you remain the same Tifa you are, nothing will go wrong"  
  
"Ditto," said Joanne and Ana.  
  
"Thanks guys"  
  
"Hey!" Serena yelled towards them.  
  
"Yo Serena!" Yuffie and Ana returned the greeting.  
  
Serena ran up to Tifa and Joanne and tackled them into a hug. Serena had taken a great liking to them; they were the older sisters she never had.  
  
"Someone's in a good mood," Joanne said, while walking with the younger girl, "Let's get something to eat"  
  
"Sure! Let's go" Serena said, while she brought Tifa beside her, so she was sandwiched between her 'sisters'  
  
"Wait - where is that boyfriend of mine? Where is his sidekick? We can't go anywhere without them, now can we?  
  
Without warning, Alex snuck up behind Joanne, grabbed her by the waist, and tickled her relentlessly.  
  
"Looks like somebody missed me," he said, dropping a kiss on her forehead.  
  
Chris sauntered casually towards Ana and ruffled her hair, only to be threatened playfully by his best friend.  
  
"Oh yeah, guys - don't forget dinner tonight" Tifa said as they headed out the school gates.  
  
"Wouldn't miss it for the world Tif" Joanne replied, the two were slowly developing a good friendship.  
  
Tifa smiled.  
  
"Hey Tif, I heard the commotion from outside the locker room. You're okay right?" Alex asked, concerned about the newest member of the group.  
  
"Yeah, I'm fine," she replied, ruffling Serena's bangs.  
  
~*~*Later in the Evening*~*~  
  
"We're going to cook up a storm Tifa," Lea Lockhart told her daughter, as she rolled up her sleeves and put on an apron.  
  
"This should be fun," Tifa said, smiling as she caught the apron her mother tossed to her and put it on.  
  
"Yes it should be - with this menu I have in mind. Tifa how does this sound? Let's see, for out appetizer, we could have cream of mushroom soup and croutons. Then for the main course, maybe pork chops in Creole sauce with mashed potato and tossed salad. For dessert we could make chocolate cheesecake and serve it with ice cream"  
  
"Sounds wonderful, let's get started" Tifa said, as she got out the cream cheese and graham cracker crumbs for the dessert.  
  
Her mother took out three packets of pork chops and the cooking began.  
  
~*~*Dinner at the Lockhart's*~*~  
  
The doorbell rang.  
  
Tifa descended the stairs. She was dressed in a red silk top - the bottom of it was cut diagonally, exposing a little of her flat abdomen. She wore a pair of black jeans with it and matching red boots.  
  
She ran to the door and opened it. The first person she saw was Serena - she was decked out in a baby yellow sweater and a pair of dark blue jeans, yellow flip-flops adorned her small feet.  
  
Alex and Joanne were arm-in-arm, smiling in a cute way. Joanne wore a baby blue top that had an interesting design and a pair of tight, dark blue jeans. She wore blue and silver Adidas sneakers.  
  
Alex wore a T-shirt was a baby blue similar to Joanne's top - only a shade darker. It was a No Fear shirt with the phrase "DRIVE IT LIKE YOU STOLE IT" on the back; he wore a pair of baggy blue jeans. A small silver hoop was in his left earlobe; he wore navy and baby blue Adidas sneakers.  
  
Yuffie came dressed in a violet long sleeved jersey and a pair of white capris. Her sneakers were a soft purple color with tinges of silver and white. She was smiling nonstop.  
  
Ana wore a green sleeveless top, decorated with flecks of darker green glitter. She wore a long dark green skirt. Her boots were black and came up to her ankles. The green outfit she was decked out in accentuated her hazel eyes.  
  
Chris was wearing a navy blue button-up shirt; a silver dragon embellished the back of it. A silver cross was around his neck. He wore heavy blue jeans and matching navy blue and silver Nike sneakers.  
  
(A/N: Have you people noticed that I'm in a very descriptive mood?)  
  
"You guys look great! Come on in and meet my parents," Tifa said, gesturing for them to come in. She gave Serena a hug.  
  
Alex and Chris both looked a little disturbed about meeting girls' parents, their fathers to be specific. Alex ran his hands nervously through his spiky black hair and just before Mr. Lockhart entered the room, he remembered to take the small silver hoop from his earlobe. He deftly removed it and slipped it into Joanne's bag. Chris was nervous too, he wouldn't stop running his fingers through his hair. Already it was already a constant habit - now it had seemingly gotten worse.  
  
"Good evening kids"  
  
Alex and Chris gulped, "G-good evening Mr. Lockhart," they both stammered. The girls greeted him smoothly.  
  
"Well, guys, let's go to the living room" Tifa said, smiling radiantly ay her friends.  
  
They went towards the direction of the living room and took their seats all over the place. Mr. Lockhart sat in the large armchair while Tifa stood beside Yuffie and Serena; they both sat on one sofa. Alex and Joanne, Ana and Chris took their places on the other sofa.  
  
"Dad, this is Serena," Tifa said, indicating to the small Chinese girl beside her.  
  
"Hello Serena. Tell me a bit about you," Mr. Lockhart asked the little girl in a kind voice.  
  
"Well, my name is Serena Yee, I'm thirteen years old. I'm in eighth grade and I like to play the violin and piano," she said with a smile.  
  
"Tifa plays the piano too, maybe you could come over and practice with her or let her teach you something," he suggested kindly.  
  
"I would like that," she replied, still smiling.  
  
"I'm sure you're a budding musician," he said to Serena before turning to Yuffie.  
  
"And who are you?" he asked Yuffie.  
  
"I'm Yuffie Kisaragi, I'm sixteen years old - I'm in the same class as Tifa and I like sports and cars," a cheerful Yuffie said.  
  
"That is nice, you and Tifa have some of the same interests as well; what is your favorite car?" he asked, in a friendly manner.  
  
"The Mitsubishi Eclipse sir," she answered quickly.  
  
"Mitsubishi eh?" he said, rubbing his chin thoughtfully.  
  
"Yes sir . . . umm, Mr. Lockhart, do you mind me asking you a question?" Yuffie asked.  
  
"No, I don't mind - go right ahead" he replied.  
  
"Can an RX-7 out power an Evo7?" she asked, smiling at the others.  
  
"Yes, an RX-7 can out power an Evo7" he replied. Yuffie's face fell; she very well knew the answer but she was too defiant to admit it. "Is that all Yuffie?"  
  
"Err . . . um, yes sir"  
  
"Dad, this is Joanne Cheng," Tifa said, walking over towards her, indicating her 'sister'  
  
"Tell me a bit about yourself, Joanne"  
  
"Well, I'm in the same class as Tifa, I like swimming and I want to become a marine biologist."  
  
"Swimmer eh? What is your fastest speed?  
  
"Fifteen seconds for thirty-three and a third meters" she answered, smiling. Tifa's father was a pleasant person.  
  
"Impressive, I hope you attain all your goals and become the best marine biologist you can be"  
  
"Thank you sir" she replied, still smiling.  
  
"And who is this young lady?" he asked, looking at the tall girl with wavy brown hair and tanned skin.  
  
Ana smiled, "My name is Annemarie Jackson - Ana for short, I'm sixteen years old and I like designing. I'm in the same class as Tifa"  
  
"Interesting, designing can be successful career, do the best you can in it"  
  
"Dad, this is Alex Yee," Tifa said, slightly pulling Alex forward.  
  
"You are Serena's elder brother, am I not correct?" Mr. Lockhart queried the nervous looking boy.  
  
"Y-yes sir" he stammered.  
  
"Tell me a bit about yourself, Alex"  
  
"Uhh . . . I'm seventeen and I want to become an aerodynamic engineer. I like cars, sports and music," Alex said, feeling a little at ease with Mr. Lockhart's pleasant tone.  
  
"Aerodynamic engineer eh? I wanted to be one at one point in my life - if you really want to be one, put yourself to it and be the best there is. Then, when you're all famous for your designs, I can tell all the executive members of my company that I know you" Mr. Lockhart said with a slight smile.  
  
"Thank you for your kind encouragements Mr. Lockhart sir. I'll remember that," Alex said, as he too began to smile.  
  
'Maybe he's not so bad after all,' was the thought that ran through them both.  
  
"And who is this fellow here?" Mr. Lockhart asked, tilting his head towards Chris' direction.  
  
"I'm Christopher Allen - everyone calls me Chris though," was Chris' speedy reply.  
  
"Okay, Chris - tell me a little about yourself"  
  
"I'm seventeen, the youngest out of three. I love cars and basketball. I want to become an aerodynamic engineer too. I grew up around cars so I guess that's why I like them so much"  
  
"Interesting . . . you are all pleasant youngsters. You all share the same interests. That is good. Keep striving for your goals and ambitions. As I said to Alex, when you're all famous and rich, I can tell my execs that you are friends of my daughter and that I know you," Mr. Lockhart said, while rubbing his chin.  
  
"Dinner's ready!"  
  
"That's our cue kids, let's go and see what's up on the menu," Mr. Lockhart said, getting up from his chair.  
  
The seven teenagers and one adult got up and filed into the large dining room. It was elegantly decorated and the table was neatly arranged with crockery and utensils. Tifa gestured for them to have a seat. They sat as Tifa left the room and went to the kitchen. Minutes later, steaming platters of food were being brought in by Tifa and Mrs. Lockhart. Introductions were made and they began to eat. Positive remarks about the meal were constantly made to Mrs. Lockhart and Tifa. They talked of many random topics, peals of laughter resounded through the mansion.  
  
~*~*~*~*~  
  
"Thanks for a great evening Mr. and Mrs. L, I had a great time" Yuffie said, beaming as they were leaving the house.  
  
"No problem Yuffie, it was a pleasure having you all over - maybe we can do this again some other time, right Alex?"  
  
"That would be cool Mr. L, thanks for the offer - I wouldn't miss it," Alex said, smiling slightly.  
  
The six left, cheerful and laughing.  
  
~*~*~*~*~  
  
They would all be having a pleasant sleep tonight. Dinner with a friend, jokes and endless laughter, could enable a peaceful night's sleep to anyone.  
  
A/N: I hope you liked that - I hope the language wasn't too harsh. (My favorite part was the catfight that almost happened.) Guys, I'm SO SORRY for not being to update in a while, I've been sick . . . I just recently found out that I have serious anemia, low blood pressure and low blood count and I had to go to the doctor often, so I haven't been able to update fast enough. Thank you SO much for the overwhelming support, the reviews mean much to me. If anyone is interested in proofreading this fic, please let me know. You can IM, email, review - whatever. PLEASE review, let me know how it was, whether you liked it or not. Ideas, comments, suggestions can be either reviewed or emailed. Big thanks again to the reviewers. The next chapter should be out by next Saturday, DO NOT count on it though; it depends on how much time I get. Even though I am on holidays, I don't have much time to do pretty much anything. Please forgive any grammatical errors if there are any; I didn't have time to check. 


	6. Date 1

Strife and Lockhart- enemies or lovers?

Disclaimer: I do not own Final Fantasy 7; it belongs to Squaresoft, Sony and other associated groups, don't sue, and even if you did, you wouldn't get anything, I'm a flat broke student, suing me would make no sense at all. I may not own Cloud and Tifa, Yuffie and Vincent, but all original ideas and characters are mine to claim. Any brand names, places, or any other similar entities do not belong to me; I use them for the sole purpose of writing this fanfic and I make no profit from them (I make my disclaimer notes so long just to prove it, I DO NOT OWN IT)

A/N: I honestly believe that y'all are wondering if I'm dead or something, if I were you guys I would think the same too, providing the fact that I haven't updated since last year ^^'Thank you to all my reviewers, you mean so much to me ^^ I love you all for reading my story and supporting me. No more waiting, here it is:

WARNING: YUFFENTINE FLUFF ALERT!

Enjoy~

Waking up to a normal day, Tifa got ready for school.

  It was the same as the other days. Only that today, Kathleen was being a biotch about what happened yesterday. Tifa really didn't care.

  Classes were cut short as they teachers had a staff meeting, so the students . . . basically ran the school now. The chatter was endless, deafening shrieks of laughter, gossip and the like. Prefects were having a very hard time controlling the students; especially the popular people . . . 

~*~*~*~*~

"What do you mean I can't be using my cell phone? It is like mine, I am not going to listen to you "Miss Perfect Prefect." What is it with you prefects? You know, I don't really like your attitude; you're like what? Like a year ahead of me. What is so special and important about you?" Kathleen argued with Tanya, who was threatening her with demerits and detentions.

"Look, Kaitlin; Katherine – whatever your name is, I am not in the mood to be skylarking with you about this dumb Motorola; you can use it after school. I'm sure that you are quite aware of the rules, repeating eleventh grade twice should get it through that thick skull of yours" Tanya replied, it was obvious that she was aching to slap the bimbo across her face.

"What-ever," Kathleen retorted, flipping her hair (extensions) over her shoulder, as a sign of some serious attitude problems.

Tanya grit her teeth. This prissy little 'Miss Popular' was getting on her nerves. It was all she could do not to slap the makeup off her face.

  She swiftly snatched the small blue demerit card that lay, seemingly abandoned, from the desk. She whipped out a pen and scribbled two conduct marks and a detention on the card. With a sarcastic smirk, Tanya handed her back the card, with cheekiness so great, Kathleen wanted to snap back at her. However, the ditzy bimbo knew a little better than to mess around an authoritarian person such as Tanya.

What Tanya said was right; two extra years in eleventh grade had certainly taught her that. Yet, Kathleen Johnson had the idiocy to complain about the two conduct marks.

"What did I do to get two conducts? I swear to God, you prefects are so . . . so, I don't even know the word to describe you," the doltish girl protested after glancing at the card.

"That's very nice Johnson. Keep up with that attitude and you get a few more. I should think that you have figured it out that I don't exactly like you; is that not so?" Tanya said icily.

Kathleen kept her mouth shut after that one.

Tanya could have laughed . . .

~*~*Friday Afternoon*~*~

"Cloud, you get anywhere with the Lockhart girl? I gotta hand it to you, she's one hot chick," a medium height Latin-American boy who went by the name of Andre asked.

"Nah, I don't understand it. I want her so bad – but anytime I see her, it's like I hate her. I just don't get it," Cloud said, running slender fingers through his spiky hair.

Andre laughed, "It was just like that with Mel . . . I used to want to rip out her guts anytime I saw her; but then we just decided we were sick of hating each other for no reason"

"So what did you do? How'd you get her to be so head-over-heels in love with you like she is now?" Cloud asked, raising one perfect blond eyebrow at him.

"It happened so fast, God – I don't even know how it happened. Yo man, I gotta run. Mel's gonna kill me if I don't meet up with her in like about let's say two minutes. Cloud, just be patient – Tifa's gonna come crawling to you soon. She likes you too, I mean, if she didn't, she wouldn't hate you so much right now. The female species of our already strange kind are actually very weird – weird in a way that drives us crazy. Yo later man, I'll see you some other time," Andre said while beginning to walk backwards.

"Yeah, later man," said Cloud, walking off as well.

Cloud nearly crashed into Vincent as he rounded the corner to the staircase.

"Yo Vince, watch where you're going man" Cloud said, almost falling down the stairs.

"Sorry man, I'm in a rush. I got a date with Yuffie tonight. See you tomorrow at cadet," Vincent said, breathing as if he had been running very fast for very long.

"Yeah, later," Cloud said, turning to leave as well.

"Sound depressed man, talk to you later. Cheer up," Vincent said; slinging his bag over his right shoulder, making a sharp left turn down the tenth grade block.

Cloud sighed.

  All his friends had girlfriends now, or at least, they were dating. Well, he could too but there was a slight problem, he wanted Tifa and Tifa alone. Even though all of the girls in the school who were single wanted to go out with him – heck, even girls who were taken, still wanted to go out with him, he still wanted her and her alone.

He walked home thinking hard about Tifa. What else could he do other that think?

~*~*At Ana's House*~*~

Yuffie emerged from Ana's bathroom, clean and hair dripping wet. She carefully sat down on the salon chair in Ana's room – as though she were scared of getting some girly disease.

"Okay, Yuffie we gotta fix up your hair" Ana said, while rubbing her palms together. She was the only _girly_ girl among the four and loved doing makeovers and the like.

"Okay, do whatever you have to do to make me look good for Vincent," Yuffie said, after taking a deep breath and squeezed her eyes shut.

~*~*four and a half hours later*~*~

  Chris knocked on the front door and Serena scurried to open the door for him. He went up to Ana's room after being told that her parents weren't home. When he opened the door, all he could do was stare.

"Who's that?" Chris asked, staring at the _very_ unfamiliar girl before him.

"_Who_ do you think?" Yuffie said, scrunching up her face.

"YUFFIE?!" the astonished boy screeched

"No duh," she replied, rolling her brown eyes.

"Damn, y-you look great" Chris said, eyeing the brown-haired girl.

  She wore an elegant green chongsam*, which was piped with gold. Three-inch heeled, green glass slippers adorned her feet. A lock of wavy chocolate hair hung seductively over her left eye. She had borrowed some of Joanne's jewelry: a delicate pair of Chinese gold earrings, which were studded with jade stones, a matching necklace with similar traits and a gold charm bracelet with jade accents. Her makeup was done lightly – her lips shimmered, her cheeks were highlighted making an almost golden appearance. Her eyes were done with Tifa's expertise precision, black mascara enhanced her eyelashes; her eyelids were dusted with the right amount of golden powder.

_*chongsam – traditional Chinese dress with high collar. It is usually made of silk and very long, usually to the ankles. Often, it has florally embroidered patterns on it. It is usually worn on special occasions and certain colors signify special meaning, e.g. red and gold signify marriage; full white with no decoration and a white headband signify mourning etc._

 "I take it that I actually look like a girl. That's good . . . or well, at least I think that's good," Yuffie said, glancing towards the floor.

  Tifa, Joanne, Ana and Serena nodded to each other. They did a fine job of making Yuffie look exceptionally splendid for her night with Vincent. Sure, she was a tomboy and sure, she didn't do all the girly things; but she had liked Vincent ever since she was little, Now that she was going to be going on a date with him, something she had waited her entire life for.

"Okay, let's go Yuff. I guarantee – you're gonna make Vincent go wild. Who knew you could actually look like a girl? A hot one at that" Chris said, cautiously hiding behind Ana.

Yuffie often had strange mood swings and could take a compliment as an insult, so Chris was just taking precautionary cover.

"I'll let it pass for you today Christopher Ricardo Allen," Yuffie replied, shooting him a cold glance.

"Meep!" Chris squealed, hiding his face in Ana's long wavy hair.

"Let's go Allen," Yuffie said, moving towards the door.

"Hey Yuffie, wait a sec," Serena said, fumbling for a small vial of perfume. She produced it with a grin, "Here! Essence of rose and lavender. That'll definitely drive him crazy," she said, tossing it to the older girl.

"Thanks 'Rena," Yuffie said, catching the bottle of perfume that was thrown to her. Yuffie picked up a small matching purse and went towards the door.

"Have fun Yuff!"

Chris opened the door for her, and she took a deep breath.

"Later guys,"

The two went downstairs and to Chris' car – a sleek Toyota Levin.

Chris drove to Yuffie's house and bid her farewell and good luck – only to be rewarded by a sharp smack.

"That hurt Yuffie," Chris complained, feigning pain, "You better not do the same to Vincent, I only let it pass 'cause we've been friends for God knows how long"

"Thank you for dropping me home Christopher," Yuffie said, pretending she didn't hear a word of his complaint.

"Have fun Yuff," Chris said, stepping on the gas pedal and speeding the corner at an alarming rate.

Yuffie entered the front door; her parents were on a two-weeklong cruise. She had fifteen minutes until Vincent came.

She waited.

The doorbell rang

She got up quickly and opened the door.

"H-hi Vincent," she said lamely.

"Hello Yuffie. You're looking quite beautiful tonight," he said, looking her over thoroughly.

"Thank you . . . Would you like to come in for a drink or something?" Yuffie asked, blushing at his compliment.

"Sure" he said, stepping into the spacious hallway.

"So . . . what do you want to drink? Soda? Water?" Yuffie asked as she walked with him into the house.

"Water is just fine . . . Oh and umm . . . these are for you," he said, handing her a large bouquet of yellow roses, "Yellow roses signify friendship, friendship I want to deepen between the two of us,"

"Oh my, Vincent that is so sweet. Thank you – let me get a vase for those. Please sit and make yourself at home," Yuffie said, with a feminine charm no one – not even herself, knew she possessed

"You're welcome Yuffie," Vincent said taking a seat on the plush armchair beside him.

Yuffie went to the kitchen, filled a tall glass with water and ice, and brought it to Vincent who sat, scanning the new surroundings.

  She retraced her route to the kitchen and chopped off the ends of the roses. She found a golden vase and put some water in it. She carefully and swiftly walked toward the living room and placed the delicate flowers into a simple, yet elegant arrangement and stood back to admire her handiwork.

No one knew it, but Yuffie grew up like a geisha, learning fancy arts as a child. Even though she was brought up in a mature fashion, it was one of Yuffie's many façades.

She delicately sniffed one of the roses; its scent was exhilarating. She placed the vase on the coffee table with care.

She smiled at Vincent.

He smiled back.

(A/N: OMG! Vincent smiling?! That's just not right)

"Well, let's go" he said, getting up from his seat.

"Okay," she replied, taking up her purse while Vincent opened the door for her.

  Vincent took her arm in his and escorted her to his car – a neat, black Toyota Supra. He cruised towards the Chez Pascal – a glamorous restaurant on the other side of town. They were there in a matter of minutes and Yuffie was breathless at the beauty of the romantic atmosphere.

  They were lead to a private room with a pleasant mood. Appetizers and drinks were already laid out on the table. The two sat down and spoke a little about school, and other trivial things; occasionally nibbling at the hors d'oeuvres

"What is the little lady having tonight?" he asked, readying his writing apparatus.

"I'll have the grilled shrimp in Caesar . . . on plain noodles," Yuffie replied with a smile.

Vincent smiled at her smile. Yuffie blushed.

"And you, young sir?"

"Uhh . . . lobster and shrimp pasta" Vincent replied, ordering the first thing that caught his eye.

"Okay, classic Caesar shrimp on plain noodles and a roast lobster and shrimp pasta. Any special sides, drinks or desserts?" the waiter asked, scribbling down their order.

"I'll have fruit punch," Yuffie said, smiling at Vincent.

"Piña colada and uhh . . . is strawberry cheesecake okay with you Yuffie?" Vincent asked.

"Cheesecake is just fine," came her calm reply.

The irony of it all, her speech pattern was calm and collected, her actions were smooth and refined, yet her mind was rushing as though the world was ending.

The waiter scribbled onto his notepad again and left to do their bidding with a bow.

"I'll be back in a few minutes; I need to get some fresh air," Yuffie said, getting up from her seat.

"Okay, don't be too long," Vincent replied.

~*~*five minutes later*~*~

Yuffie re-entered the private room Vincent had arranged for them. She took her seat and stared at Vincent, straight in the eye.

"So . . . what's with the sudden interest in me Mr. Valentine?" Yuffie asked.

"Yuffie . . . I've wanted to tell you this since I met you . . . but I was just too afraid that you would reject me. I was so afraid of being hurt I decided not to tell you – but to wait for the right moment, which I believe is now, to tell you that –" Vincent said, mustering up his courage to tell Yuffie his feelings, only to be interrupted by a waiter's voice.

"– Your drinks are here," the man said, completely oblivious to his ruining the start of a _very _important conversation.

Vincent cleared his throat, "Thank you sir,"

"Mr. Valentine, the food will arrive in ten minutes"

"Yes, now please leave," Vincent growled at the man.

_'Dammit, I was so close to telling her how much I love her . . .'_ he cursed in his mind.

Suddenly, Vincent's cell phone rang

He rattled off as many curses as he could in his mind. He reluctantly left the room.

"What?" he growled into the white Nokia 3520.

(A/N: That's my phone! Well . . . at least I own one . . . but I don't own Nokia *sigh*)

"Oh, I'm sorry. I think I have the wrong number," a small voice replied from the other end.

  Vincent growled again. This was seriously pissing him off. He ended the call abruptly and stared momentarily at the cell phone's color screen. Vincent took a deep inhalation of fresh night air; the ebon-haired boy slowly walked back to the restaurant.

He re-entered the private room and sat down, a frown on his face.

"What's the matter Vincent?" Yuffie asked, concerned for the boy.

He sighed, and muttered something about fate not being fair to him.

  Yuffie stared at him with huge brown eyes. She however pretended not to hear what he had said and remained silent while an uncomfortable tension grew between them.

  Five minutes later, a waiter came in the room with their orders. The two adolescents thanked him and began their meal. The two had deep conversation, learning much about each other in the time span of one short meal.

"Yuffie, you're a wonderful person to be with, not to mention beautiful," Vincent said, staring at her.

She colored and muttered a tiny 'thank you'

While the two sat and savored their blissful dessert, while a beautiful symphony resonated through the room.

  After Vincent paid the bill, the two left the restaurant, arm-in-arm towards Vincent's car. After helping her into the car, Vincent smirked and turned on the car and revved the engine. After learning that Yuffie loved cars, he simply couldn't help but try to impress her with his car's capabilities.

Yuffie beamed.

Vincent drove towards a nice, spacious park – one that Yuffie had neither seen nor visited before. They stepped out and looked around their surroundings.

Roses in a myriad of colors adorned the walkways; stone carvings were placed in just the right places.

Yuffie was fighting a losing battle: not to lose her breath.

"Oh . . . my . . . God," she said, breathlessly at the beauty of the place.

Vincent merely smiled, happy to know that she approved of it.

"This, my dear is for you," Vincent said, his arms snaking around her waist. He held a small blue box tied with a silver ribbon.

She opened it and her jaw fell at the sight of the beautiful silver necklace with a tiny pink heart shaped diamond inlaid in a pure diamond pendant.

"Vincent, you shouldn't have . . . I don't know what else to say other than thank you. I'm so surprised and I don't have anything for you," she managed to say after catching her breath.

"Yuffie, I never realized how much I love you. Not until now that is. Actually, you do have something for me, your heart. I have already given you mine . . . Yuffie, I love you," Vincent said, unable to retain his feelings anymore, pulled the smaller girl into a hug.

Shock was evident in her face, which was soon replaced by happiness and hope.

"Vincent Valentine, my heart is yours . . . I love you so much . . . I thought this day would never come," Yuffie whispered, returning an affectionate hug.

Slowly, Vincent's arms found their way to Yuffie's waist, pulling her close.

He savored her warmth, seeking more of her, the two found themselves in a passionate kiss . . .

A/N: Can't believe I wrote this *shudder* WAAAY too sappy for me. I am going to skip the rest of this part, and no you perverts, there is no lemon in this fic so if you're mind is going down that road, get it out of the gutter. You want lemon? Find another fic to read; definitely not this one. That's it. I'm sorry. So busy. I don't particularly like this chapter. . . If you're not a YUFFENTINE fan, I'm sorry. I have no time anymore. And exams are around the corner so I have no idea when next I will update.


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